Lorien Legacies 4:The Fall of Five: Alternate Version
by ArcticBlue
Summary: This is my own version of the Fall of Five. I am not Pittacus Lore. I do not own these series. After the Rise of Nine, the Garde have reunited. Mostly. Five is still missing and when the tablet shows him making his way to join the others, the Garde are prepared to meet him. But then everything goes wrong. And what is Five's real identity? Total Chapters: 50. Chapters Now: 25.
1. Chapter 1: The Beginning

**PART I : THE SPILT ASHES**

**Chapter 1**

**[Five]**

From the start, there were ten of us. Ten Garde.

We were all from Lorien, the most beautiful planet in in the world. For centuries the people there had lived peacefully, so naturally we thought that peace would last forever.

We were wrong.

The Mogadarians came, from the planet Mogadore, a realm deprived of light and air, of food and water, of love and hope. They destroyed all that we held dear.

I was only four. And every time I try to remember the night they came, I can only remember the celebrations. The screams embedded with laughter. The gunfire along with the fireworks. The two moons and how blood gleamed under their glow.

And terror.

We, the nine Garde children that were remaining (the tenth was killed), were escorted into a safe spot, where one of the elders protected us with a charm. He gave us numbers. I did not understand at that time, but my Cépan explained it to me. We could only be killed in an order-the order of the numbers that were given us. We were also given nine Cépan, one for each of us, to instruct and protect us.

After the charm, we were placed in a spacecraft, one that was designed to place us into orbit around Lorien, and maintain our safety while the battle raged below us. We were assured that we would win, and we would return to Lorien once more, though no one knew how long it would take. Some speculated it would take years.

They were wrong, again. The Garde in Lorien were quickly eliminated by the Mogs. They took over the planet and started to contaminate it, as they did with Mogadore.

In despair, we flew to Earth, the life sustaining planet closest to Lorien, apart from Mogadore. And there we parted. All nine young Garde, along with nine Cépan.

And that's how it has been ever since. Until they caught Number One in Malaysia. And Number Two in London. And Number Three in Africa.

All three Garde were killed. All three scars burnt onto my leg.

I am Number Five.

And I believe, with the others, we will end this war.


	2. Chapter 2: The Escape

2.

[Seven]

For a moment, nobody says anything. We're just too shocked that the Garde, all except for Five, have finally come together, along with the addition of Sarah Hart and Bernie Kosar. Then we hear what sounds like an earthquake coming from the other side of the base, and along with that the room shakes too. Ella is almost blown off her feet, and I use my telekinesis to stop the debris from hurting anybody.

"Whoa, are they blowing this place up?" Eight asks.

"No time to find out. Let's get moving." says Six.

John counters her. "We can find out. Nine, you're the one with the super hearing. What's going on on the side?"

"Glad you asked me, man. Now, allow me to tune myself up…" He scrunches up his face, and concentrates. "Nope, just Mog talk and soldiers bailing. Wait, I think I hear someone."

"Who?" I ask.

"Guys, we really don't have the time." Six says, a little impatient. Let's get out of here before everyone's buried in this dump."

"Wait a sec… I think that's the little human buddy of yours!" Nine says to John.

"Sam? He's here?" John asks, incredulously.

"He is, John, I saw them drag him to someplace on the other side of the base a couple of days ago, and I figured you already knew."says Sarah.

"I think there's someone with him! There's this older guy that's talking to Sam. I can't figure out what they're saying, though I think they've already made their way out of the base. Let's go find their asses af..."

Before Nine finishes what he's saying, another earthquake blast hits us so hard, most of us really get knocked off our feet. After we stand up, Eight speaks up. "I agree with Six. We totally should go before this place is decimated. We'll find these guys you're talking about after we get out of here."

"Thank you! Glad to see I'm not the only one who sees sense." Six smiles, and I instantly feel so jealous that I hate myself. Six is my best friend aside from Ella. Six and Eight are only friends. I try to cover my reaction by taking Ella's hand and saying "Sure, let's go." Eight notices my envy, but (wisely) doesn't say anything.

As we rush through the door, the lights dim a bit and the others yell in shock.

"Who turned off the lights?" Ella asks.

"Turned off? What are you talking about?" I say.

Nine snorts. "Just because you have the ability to see in the dark doesn't mean the others have, Seven."

Wow, my legacy is much better than it seemed before. And plus, I just got an upgrade. Before, the dark glowed like a bright candlelight. Now, it's equal to the light of dozens of lightbulbs. Amazing.

John turns on his Lumen, and everyone follows him. Again, I take the lead because the Lumen from John is quite dim, so they can see just that much.

As we run across the prison cells, and into the room with pillars, silence greets us. Everyone seems to have evacuated, even that foul woman Carter.

"Nine, you picking up a signal?" John asks as we enter the passageway with the rooms that we battled the Mogs.

"Dude, what am I, a radio transmitter?"

"Actually, you're a receiver, not transmitter."Six says, rolling her eyes. "But please, just tell us."

Nine smiles. I bet he hasn't heard "please" from a girl as pretty as Six.

"Sorry to break it to you, but I don't have a signal yet, sweetheart. They're too far away. Good news is they've made their way out of the base. Sammy and that dude should be safe."

"Who's Sam?"Ella asks.

"You'll meet him very soon, Ella. I hope." John says gently. The more I am with John, the more I like him. I read about him on the internet in Spain, so it's unreal that he's here in real person. Back then I was alone, with no company except for Hector and an too pious Adelina…

Don't think about them. It helps, that way. Not thinking about someone you love that is already dead. Or else a fresh wave of pain ripples throughout my body, tearing at me, making me even more depressed than I already am.

Well, at least I have the Garde with me. I have Ella, and Eight, and Six, and everyone else. At least I'm not alone.

But being from Lorien, alone has an entirely different meaning.


	3. Chapter 3: The Truck

**Hi guys, thanks for all the reviews! Chapter 3 is out. Chapter 4 will have Five's PoV. Sorry if I stick with Marina's for the time being . **

**Arctic Blue**

* * *

3 Seven

As we climb up onto the well, beside the destroyed cactus, John does a quick headcount.

"Six, Marina, Eight, Nine, Ella, Sarah, and me. Oh, and you, BK, That makes eight of us." The beagle/chimaera barks happily. He had been extremely useful during the battle. "So, what do you think, Nine? Will we all fit in your truck?"

"Just wait until you get your asses in my truck."

"Fine, let's go."John says.

"Wait, what about our ship?" Six asks. "Leaving it exposed during an earthquake isn't entirely wise."

"That's hardly an important matter." John points out. "Our primary goal is to kill Setrakus Ra. And even if this ship is destroyed, we'll still have the second one."

"Good point."Eight says, and we all walk through the desert with Nine and John leading us.

After a few minutes of walking in the desert, all eight of us are seated in an old beat-up Ford Contour.

"I can't believe this thing survived the battle."Eight says.

Nine look at him as if he is crazy. "Dude, this thing has more armor plated on it than a freaking tank! It had better survive the battle!"

We look at the Ford Contour with new found respect.

Six clears her throat, "Now that we've finished bragging, can we please move on?

Nine smiles. "Of course, sweetheart."

Behind me, Ella smiles at me and mimics throwing up. I smile back at her.

As soon as we get out of range, the entire Dulce base more or less collapses on itself. Tanks explode, and a few moments later nearly nothing remains except for the wreckage and a few stray bombs. A few more trucks trying to escape the base get crushed to dust, and the ground behind us moves, as if it has a will of its own. The truck veers sharply to the right as the ground beneath us also shifts.

"Whoa, Nine, watch out!" I yell as we drift across the desert, barely avoiding a flying truck.

"Hey, no worries." I do see a bead of sweat on his neck though.

"Where are we going?" I ask Nine.

Nine grins."Chicago, Illinois. I have a penthouse there."

"I hope Sam isn't on one of these trucks," Four says grimly.

"Shouldn't be. I can hear him from here."Nine says. "Him and that dude. They say they're going to Chicago!"

"Well, that's pure luck."John says. "We'll meet with them there."

"Actually, it isn't."Ella said. "I told them to get to Chicago. I think, since he isn't from Lorien, he won't be able to communicate to me, but I can talk to him,"

Eight laughs."Ella, you rock!"

"Ok, guys, tuck in. Chicago it is." say Nine.

Everybody relaxes. I can't believe that minutes ago we were fighting Setrakus Ra, and now we're sitting in a car talking to each other like regular teens. Well, almost like regular teens. Nine doesn't have a real license.

I see, in the back of the car, John is talking to Sarah, with BK on his lap. I feel glad, but also sorry for these two. Glad that John saved Sarah, and Sarah saved us. Glad for their love. But sorry for the fact that their relationship won't last very long, and that both would suffer a great deal as a consequence.

_What about you and Eight?_ Ella asks in my mind.

God, that really is creepy. I feel that not only does Ella have telepathy, she also has the Legacy to read minds. Though that's probably because we know each other too well.

_I haven't thought about it._ I lie/think. _For now we're just friends._

_I hope not._ Ella thinks. _You two are a cute couple. And you saved Eight back there._

_Eight saved me more than once. _I think. _I'm really grateful to him._

_Even though he knocked down Stonehenge?_

_OK, maybe not that grateful. _Ella and I laugh so hard that Eight stares at us, like we're crazy. I suppose we are.

Heck, who isn't?


	4. Chapter 4 The Letter

**Hi, guys, a little more reviews, please? And sorry if this chapter seems so Far-fetched I hope to finish these series before 27th so I'm working extra hard. Chapter 5 and 6 will come out together tonight, so stay tuned.**

**-Arctic Blue**

* * *

4.[Five]

Ten things to know about me:

1.I am number Five.

2.I am a boy.

3. Since the day Lorien was attacked, I have been number Five.

4.I do not have an Earth name.

5 My Cépan is dead. He has been dead since I was six.

6.I am the only Garde that is on his own. The others have teamed up.

7.I hate my Legacies.

8.I have the Legacy that before only Pittacus had, only because he had all the legacies.

9.I am not Pittacus Lore. Or his child incarnation. End of story.

10. My best friend is …

"Wait, are you writing a diary?" a girl with reddish brown hair sits next to me, before I finish writing my best friend's name.

"It's not a diary! It's something for the other Garde once I meet up with them!" I say.

"Doesn't seem like an introductory letter to me."

"Whatever, Margaret."

Margaret, is well, my best friend's other name. She's also pretty much my only friend, although sometimes she can be a pain in the ass. Ok, exaggeration. But she does get annoying.

"Where do you think the other Garde are?"

"Do I look like I care?" I say, shoving my newly written piece and the one I wrote about Lorien into an envelope.

"Could've fooled me."She points to the envelope.

Did I mention she could be annoying?

"They left me all alone, Margaret. I know we're supposed to win this war and we can't do it without them, but still. I mean, they were all having fun together, and they don't even care about you and me. While we're in this dump."

Marg rolls her eyes. "This place is not a dump. You should see London."

"Oh, yeah? For like my whole life, I've been in places like this. Trees, grass, hot air, huts. I only remember Vancouver, and that was when my Cépan was still alive! And I don't even remember his name."

"You know what we should do? Let's open that chest of yours and take out the red crystal and try to communicate with the others. Better than listening to you whine."

I nod, and focus my concentration on my chest, hidden underneath a trap door. I'm getting better and better in my telekinesis. I open the trap door with my mind, and carefully lift the heavy box, floating it next to me.

"Wow. I wish I had telekinesis."Margaret says.

"You will, very soon." I say. "Ok, I see the red crystal. Now, what do I do, talk to it?"

"Duh, stupid."

Whatever, I hold the crystal in my hands like a microphone, and speak.

"Hi, guys, this is Five. I know you're somewhere in the Desert and chances are you won't open your chest this exact moment, but, well, if you hear this it means I'm my way. Stay tuned."

"That's it?" Margaret asks.

"Well, they weren't listening. What do you expect me to say? And pack your clothes. We're leaving at one in the afternoon."

"I hate you, Five."

"I hate you, too. So we're even." I say.

I walk into my room. I'm excited that I'm finally going to meet the Garde, even though they were totally ignoring me. It means I can finally fight and kill the Mogs along with my kind. Which reminds me, I still have something to do.

I finish my list.

9.I am not Pittacus Lore. Or his child incarnation. End of story.

10. My best friend is Two, a.k.a Maggie Hoyle, a.k.a Margaret.


	5. Chapter 5: The Warning

**Thanks for everyone that wrote a review and special thanks to mutantblueberry who praised me so much!**

**(So happy.) So this is Chapter Five. Since the book name is Fall of Five I thought I would write an extra long **

**chapter every five chapters, and here it is. Prepare to read about Two, Five's mysterious power, and the fate **

**of Four to Ten as they settle in Nine's Penthouse. (And please don't yell at me with CAPS LOCK ON because**

**Five has a stupid power, I did it just to bring the others back.)- Arctic Blue.**

**(As you may have guessed, i love my pen name)**

* * *

5

[Five]

[Five]

"I met Loridas again." Two says.

"That's the second time in a week you've met him. And the second time in total too." I point out. "What did he say?"

Two shakes her head. "Something about someone learning a new legacy."

I grin. "Let's just hope it's me."

"Or me." Two says, rubbing her eyes, clearly not completely awake. "I don't have any legacies, but you have two already."

"Telekinesis does not count as a proper legacy. Everyone gets them eventually, Margaret." I say. I'm still using her human name, in case mogs are spying on us.

"I was pointing to your vision Legacy, the one that makes you see our beloved Setrakus Ra.

"Oh. You know, that's a useful one. I saw the Garde in New Mexico."

"Only after Loridas told me and I told you!" Two retorts.

"Whatever. But Chicago was like, totally from my vision" I sip from my Coke. "Ugh, this stuff is like acid. Why do people love it that much?"

"That's only because you come from, like, the wilderness."

"Hey! I'm civilized! And besides, where can you find such a hot looking wilderness-boy like me?" I say, grinning.

Two snorts, but wait. Am I hallucinating, or is she blushing a bit?

Oops. Not cool.

I crunch up my coke can and throw it into the garbage can.

We're on the flight to Chicago, where we can hopefully meet Four, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, and everyone else, trash the mogs, and save the day.

I know. That's quite a big hope.

I look sideways at Two., already asleep again. I found her a year ago, back in the days when I was traveling around Africa alone. The Mogs had caught up with me, and I was using my telekinesis to throw them around. Unknown to me, a Scout was behind me, and he fired his blaster, determined to blow my head apart.

Of course, since I was Five and Three had just died, it was HIS head that was blown apart. But unlike my recent experiences, when I only felt a warm sensation and nothing else, that time was different. Perhaps it was the result of not sleeping for days, but I suddenly got drowsy and tired, and my vision became so blurry I collapsed and lost consciousness

When I woke up, I was in this weird room, dark as night, with the eerie voices of people chattering all around me. But that wasn't the weird part. The weird part was a) even though it was completely dark, I could see so clearly that even the intricate designs of the floor was visible to me. I did not feel it was dark at all and b) even though I heard people talking, there was no one around me.

And then, just when I decided this was some crazy dream, and I would soon wake up to see that I was in a Mog cell, a girl suddenly became visible.

"Five." one word, and I knew she wasn't human. Probably Loric? She looked to normal to be a Mogadarian.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"Two. I'm one of you."

I laughed coldly. Two is dead. There is no way she is Two.

"You're not Two." I say. "And this will prove it."

I rolled up my trouser sleeve, showing all three marks. Wait: all two marks. The second mark had completely disappeared, leaving a gap between the first and the third.

She rolled her eyes. "What will prove it?"

Just as I was about to say something smart like "No way, you must be a Mog." or "Ahhh! A ghost" or "And I'm One and let's be best friends!", she interrupted me. "Come on, let's get back, the Mogs are poking you." And suddenly, as though I was sucked by a giant tornado, I was brought back to Africa along with Two.

We pushed back the Mog force and escaped.

That night, Two told me how she was there. "It's a Legacy, called Necrokinesis. You can bring back dead people to let them live as another incarnation, unseen to anyone else than you or anyone who shares your power."

I thought it was pretty much the most ridiculous thing I heard. How could anyone have that power? You could literally bring back every Garde that died in the battle we had with Mogadore the day we flew out of Lorien.

Two saw my doubt, and explained to me: " It isn't as easy as you think. It's more of a forced legacy, one that only comes into use when it should. Try summoning One and Three, it won't work."

I realized she was right. Still, it's a stupid legacy, especially as it won't work even if I wanted it to really bad.

I became best friends with Two. She told me about her life, traveling with the Cépan known as Conrad Hoyle, under the alias Maggie Hoyle. She told me about the day she died, the day she posted a message on the internet and they found her, the day a Mog named Adam tried to help her escape, but changed track as soon as the others of his kind rushed into her room, the day another Mog boy plunged a knife into her heart.

I never was able to visit the dark room again. I knew that it was the Loric version of the Underworld, where Loric go when they die. I wonder if I'll see my parents in there someday. Or Three.

I did see One, though. One day when I was practicing was my telekinesis, she suddenly appeared, a tan girl with blond hair. She looked real, but her form kept flickering.

Two and I were startled, and One was startled even then we talked to her. She told us of the boy Adam Two spoke about, and how she transferred her powers into his body. She made us promise to not let the other Garde kill him on sight. I wanted to use my power to bring her to us, but as soon as we promised not to kill Adam, she disappeared, probably retreating into the Loric heavens.

Lucky One. She gets to go to heaven while Two and I have to stick to Earth battling Mogs.

Two goes there every night, though. It's a side effect of being brought back to the living. That's how she met Loridas, the tenth Elder and told him about our quest, seeking his help. Loridas is helpful, but not enough.

At least we know where the others are.

Thinking about the past sure kills time, for when I open my eyes, Two is awake again.

"Another conversation with Loridas?"

She shakes her head.

A flight attendant must've overheard me talking to nobody (only I can see or hear Two) so she walks up to me.

"Do you need any help, sir?"

I shake my head and smile. She looks at me as if I'm crazy, and walks away.

"My turn to sleep." I tell Two.

She nods. "I was tired of Paradise anyway."

John Smith would probably find this funny.

[Seven]

"Hi, guys, this is Five. I know you're somewhere in the Desert and chances are you won't open your chest this exact moment, but, well, if you hear this it means I'm my way. Stay tuned."

I listen to the recording again, and the full meaning of the words hit me.

Five is a boy. Five knows where we are. Five is coming.

I tell Ella this immediately. She listens to the recording again (I found out you can listen to past recordings by shaking the red crystal and saying the name of the person doing the recording).

_What if it's a trap? _Ella asks.

Ella has gotten a lot better in telepathy recently she mostly just thinks instead of talking. It's faster, more convenient, and doesn't make your mouth feel dry. And no one says this out loud but it also reassures Ella and convinces her that she's not at all useless.

She isn't. **She's only just started getting her legacies. Who knows what she might be capable of.** Ella's also given Sam, John's friend from Ohio, a number to call. We know he's with his dad, and he'll arrive this evening. Right now, only Nine, Ella, BK and I are in Nine's penthouse. However I dislike Nine, he is certainly rich. And that means a good shower, comfy beds, training (we haven't began yet) and everything else. But food and drinks aren't included. That's why Four and Sarah are buying sustenance, while Six and Eight are going to scout the perimeter of this place.

"This could get interesting, huh?"Nine said as Six and Eight took off, while winking at me. I gave him a telekinetic punch and broke his nose. I know, too violent, but Nine was right and I obviously minded so much that I wasn't thinking clearly.

I did heal his nose after he stopped fuming, though I heard Ella laughing quietly inside her mind.

Nine certainly isn't popular around girls.

_I don't know. Let's call Six and Eight back and wait for John and Four. We'll talk about it together. But not to Nine now._ I think.

_Won't he be angry?_ Ella asks.

_I think he'll be too pissed off at the fact that Five isn't a girl to stay mad at us._

Ella giggles. She really is sweet.

Three hours later, about 4 hours to Sam and Malcolm's arrival, every one is seated around the white tablet, which is broadcasting Five's location (Somewhere in Mexico, apparently), while they listen to the recording again and again.

Eight breaks the silence. "So, Five's coming here, he's a boy, and we don't know if the Mogs are on his tail."

"Pretty much." I agree.

"And we don't know whether this is a trap or not." John shakes his head.

"Yup." Ella says.

Nine cuts us off. "Sounds like crap to me. Let's just deal with this asshole. We have all the security we need. Let's just send Six and Eight to scout again. So we'll be prepared."

Nine does really plan to make my life difficult.

The others nod because together with invisibility and teleportation, they are a perfect scout pair. No one realizes my discomfort, except for Ella and Sarah. Wow, surprise. I thought Sarah was totally smitten with John for anyone else, but now she's looking at me sympathetically. I guess the Me-Six-Eight thing must have once been Her-Six-John.

And suddenly I hate Six so badly that tears come into my eyes. I know I'm an idiot for crying, but I can't stop it. Hoping no one will notice, I say to the others I'm going to the bathroom, and I leave the conversation.

I wipe my eyes and try to think rationally. _Really, Marina, this is not like you._ I scold myself. I convince me that Six wasn't doing it on purpose, but newfound hate for my previous friend overwhelms me.

Maybe I should break up with Eight. That should give me some comfort. But as my mind nods, my whole body is screaming NO! Breaking up is not an action. Maybe I could hit Six on the nose like I did with Nine. That would make me feel better.

Wait… where did that thought come from? It was like an evil version of myself just convinced me to hit Six. _I hate you for thinking that, Marina._ I say to myself.

And suddenly it doesn't seem like a burden after all.

When I plan on walking back and giving a formal apology, the door creaks open and someone enters the room. I expected it to be Ella, or Eight, or even Sarah, trying to comfort me. But it isn't.

It is Six.

I gulp and look at her. Before I can issue an apology like "Sorry, Six", she surprises me by hugging me.

"I'm sorry, Marina. I'm really sorry. I just told Eight that we had better stop going out together. And I'm sorry for being such a bitc…"

Before she can cuss herself, I say to her: "It's all right, Six. It's just my fault."

We smile, and exit the bathroom. Eight and Nine are together, and they look surprised at the sight of Six and I holding hands. I suppose they think we're friends again.

They are wrong. We always were.

… …

"Sam's downstairs!" Nine alerts us.

"And Five just crossed the border of the States." says Ella.

I look over Nine's shoulder (I may have forgiven Eight and Six but I'm not forgiving Nine yet). He's just like the sketches, although I would've drawn them better. "Why isn't his dad with him?"

"I don't know, man."Nine says. "Let's just figure it's not a trap and disable the Mog sensors and the weapons. No! We are totally gonna search him."

Six looks annoyed. "Sam is a lot more loyal than you."

"And look what that got him! In jail!"Nine retorts. "I don't trust that scruffy kid, sweetheart."

"Call me sweetheart again and I'll fry that smile off your face."

As much as I would like to see Nine getting beaten up by Six, this is not the time.

"It's Ok, Six. Let's just do one safe check and see if he has any Mog bugs." I say.

"Roger that."Nine types in his keyboard.

As Sam gets in the elevator, a scanner starts sweeping him.

No Sign Of Mog Traces. All Clear. I read from the screen.

"She told you." John says.

"Whatever, Johnny boy, but I don't like this a bit." Nine snaps.

Sam has reached our floor, and enters our lobby.

"Sam!" John hugs him. "Long time no see."

"Yeah, well, I know. Hi, Sarah. Hi, Six. And hey there, BK. Hey, Nine."

Six is grinning like crazy. Sarah just smiles although I think she's relieved that Sam made it too. BK barks at him too, so I guess Sam must be much more popular than Nine. Nine just nods.

"Care to introduce me to the rest of you guys?" he gestures toward me, Ella, and Eight.

"Sure, this is…" Before John finishes what he's saying, Sam's phone rings.

"Sorry, wait a sec. This is Sam." He says, and then pauses, apparently shocked. "Adam, is that you?" And then: "He's-" But the other guy interrupts him. He talks for a bit, and I hear the words "John Hancock Center" Sam gasps. "How- how did you know that?" Sam cranks up the volume so that everyone can hear.

It's from a guy who I don't know, so I wonder why Sam is letting us hear this. But then I hear his words.

"They know, Sam! They know and they're coming for you!"

* * *

**So, that's it for Chapter Five. Remind me if there's errors, because fanfiction constantly deletes part of my text. The bold part was Ella's prophecy, copied and pasted from Lorien Legacies website. I'll add the other ones later. So far only Ella's prophecy is good. The last conversation was taken word by word from the Forgotten Ones, where Adam talks to Sam on the phone. And sorry about the romance factor, I'm not good at writing those stuff. But so far Seven is with Eight and Six is out of the way.**

**Also, BTW, what do you think, or hope, will happen next? Do you like Five's Legacy or do you think there are questions to it that I haven't let Two answer yet? Write a review. Again, thanks for the support of I wish I could be number five, mutant blueberry, ****mystery fanatic no.1, and bob. Arctic Blue, out.**


	6. Chapter 6 : The Illusion

**Hi guys, it's almost bedtime and I thought I'd give an incentive to wake up early tomorrow. Chapter Six is finished, and here it is. Don't expect it to be as good as Chapter Five, it's just so I could bring Adam into the party, it's a little short, and a little boring, but whatever. I'll let you decide.**

**Arctic Blue**

* * *

6.

[Adam]

"Hey, Dust. Good to see you, buddy. You awake this soon?" I ask.

It's 4 p.m, seven hours after I phoned Sam and told him and the Garde about the coming invasion. I'm in Chicago, desperately trying to find the John Hancock Center. I should've arrived by ten yesterday, but police barricades were set up, not allowing anyone go through. An hour ago, I lost my patience and completely crushed the vacated cars with my seismic Legacy. The police, Ra bless them, had ran away when the earth shot a roadblock car 50 feet into the sky.

"I wish you had a good sleep." I continue. "Because we'll be killing Mogadarians soon." Dust nods his tiny head, and changes from an eagle to a poodle, which will draw less attention to us while we are upon humans. I focus on my driving and we continue our journey across Chicago.

John Hancock Center was quite easy to find. It's the tallest building around (probably in all of Chicago? I don't know), and the police are forming another barricade around it, much more thicker and efficient. People all around me are pointing at the tower, but I can't see clearly from the car, so I coax the Chimaera in the backseat to change into hamsters and I put them in a plastic bag I found. Then I look up and see what everyone is pointing at.

"Oh. My. Setrakus Ra." I said. (Kind Reminder: For us, we say Ra while the humans say God. To most Mogs, they are the same thing. To me Ra means the opposite, but old habits die hard.) The top part of the John Hancock Center is still intact, but the bottom part has been perished, and made the entire structure look like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It's a miracle that the tower hasn't collapsed yet.

If I remember clearly, the Garde got the Penthouse. So how come the top is fine while the bottom is destroyed? Perhaps the Garde took the fight to the lower levels? Quite hard to believe.

Dust nudges my foot, and lifts a paw to the middle part of the Center. My eyes follow where he's "pointing" at. For a few moment, I don't comprehend. Then suddenly, I see the catch in the perfect illusion.

The middle of the tower must be hardest to conceal. Of course.

I speak to Dust. "A ride, please?"

Dust nods, and changes into some creature I've never seen before. At first I think it's a giant eagle, but then I notice the lion body and paws and realize my pet has turned into a giant griffin. Incredible.

I climb onto his back, and we take off, soaring into the sky as the humans below us watch in awe. One guy picks up his phone and starts to film us, and I figure pretty soon Dust and I will be the stars on Youtube, right next to the guy from Ohio who blew up his school. Which also means I'll be on Mog-tube. Depressing thought.

At least they already know who I am and where I am.

We rise until we reach the mid-section. What caught my eye here was the fact the state of the building was changing, slowly turning to ruined like the lower part at first, but constantly swapping with the the undamaged section, like the penthouse.

I knew that high ranking Mog officers had the power to create illusions, but I never realized it was this powerful. One of them obviously cast an illusion on this tower, forcing the top part to look undamaged, and the bottom part destroyed, so the police wouldn't try to enter and interfere. This probably means Chicago police haven't betrayed their cause (like I have) yet.

This also means that the Garde are getting one hell of a fight, and the Mogs had to cover it, hoping people like me or like Malcolm won't intervene.

Well, that plan sucks.

I'm helping the Garde now. And despite what tolls the war would take, I will not finish fighting unless I am dead, or unless we drive the other Mogs back to Mogadore and take Setrakus Ra's freaking head off his shoulders.

I am no longer a Mogadarian weakling. I am no longer just Adamus, no longer just a rogue Mog.

I am the host of One, and I will avenge her death.

* * *

**All right, that wasn't SO bad was it? And Chapter Seven is a fighting scene so perk up! Coming to you tomorrow before ten o'clock: the fall of five alternative version chapter seven, by Arctic Blue. And keep up with the reviews, thanks berry and Numero Cinco as they were the first to review! Arctic Blue, out. (Am I tired after writing four chapters today)**


	7. Chapter 7 : The Fight

**Thanks for all the reviews; So, it's back to Marina. She does get most of the spotlight huh? Don't worry, Chapter Eight will have Adam, Five, and Two in it.**

* * *

7

[Seven]

Just when I thought having Eight and Six as the scouts couldn't get worse, it just did.

Nine uses his Anti-Gravity legacy to run up the building closest to the Center, and I follow him, running on the side of the building like I have magnets attached to my feet.

Nine does have a cool Legacy, after all.

At the top of the building, he stops and I do too, keeping my distance. I scan the road for any suspicious vehicles, or Mogs. The streets are empty except for an occasional honking car, startling pedestrians.

I suppose the others saw sense in letting Nine and I scout the perimeter: He has Anti-Gravity, which makes us see further if we're on buildings, and I have night vision. Speed, also a part of Nine's Legacy, helps us get back in time for the battle. And I guess my healing and Nine's hearing can't hurt.

"Nine and Marina, this is John and Eight. Do you see any suspicious vehicles or Mog pedestrians? Over."

"This is Nine, perimeter is clear. Over."

"Marina, are you and Nine getting along back there?" Eight asks

I glance at Nine, who grins wickedly at me. "We're fine for now. Over."

"Alpha, Beta, this is Command. Report your position. Over."

Command is basically just Sam and Six. Ella and Sarah are fortifying the room, adding the occasion turret or laser beam.

"This is Alpha, coast is clear, we're on top of a large building, sitting on our asses and waiting for the Mogs. Over." Nine says.

"This is John. We're on the streets, no sign of suspicious activity. Over."

"Hey, Seven, let's switch a building. We can't see clearly enough from this one." Nine says. He puts his hand on my head and I feel someone has electrified me. I have his Legacies again, for a short time.

Not waiting for him, I jump off the building and put my feet on the wall, instantly switching gravity again. The nearest building is quite near, so I just jump and flip around, and start to run up again.

A few seconds later, Nine catches up with me, and we sit on the building again. An awkward silence.

After what seems like hours, I look at my watch. Time for a report.

"This is Alpha, perimeter is secure. Over."

"This is Beta, streets are secure. Over."

Sam talks to us. "I wonder if Adam was wrong. Could be a possibility."

_Marina, you all right there?_ Ella asks.

_Nine's not talking to me but we haven't argued. Yet._ I think.

_Good. Maybe after this you should go out with Eight and confess your feelings._ Ella says, giggling.

_Not yet. I'm sure Six doesn't love him, but I don't know if he loves six or not._ I say.

_Yeah, Six is a little preoccupied with Sam for the time being._ I smile. Maybe their relationship will last.

_How are you, Ella? Finished putting on all the weapons?_ I think.

_Yeah, Sarah and I are putting on the finishing touches. I like Sarah. I think John should be with her._ Thinks Ella.

_Sure, after… _

"Whoa, Seven! Over there!" Nine points.

I look at where's he pointing. A car in that direction pulls over, and a couple of hooded people get out. I focus my vision on them. Mogs.

I use my telekinesis to lift their car high up in the air and then slam it down, causing it to explode, and killing every Mog in the radius. Nice.

"Command, this is Alpha, Mog vehicle spotted, Mogs eliminated. Over."

"Shit." I hear Six swear. "This is Command. Beta team, search the streets for any stray Mogadarian scouts. Do you copy? Over."

"Copy."I hear Eight say."

"Marina, hold your position. Keep scanning for Mogs. Good work. Over"

I look down again and find Eight and John running towards the explosion site. Eight says something to John, and they split up, John searching the back of the tower, Eight defending the front.

I resist the urge to go down and help him._ That's not your purpose, Marina._

Eight pulls something from his pocket. The duplicator. He turns it into a doorframe and clones himself. A distraction. He sets the doorframe on the wall of the Hancock Center, making his clone look like he's looking at the wall, perhaps listening to his earpiece and talking to us. Then he teleports away and retreats into the street under us.

I wave my arms. Eight sees me and Nine, and smiles. Then suddenly he points to something behind us, shouting frantically. I turn around and gasp.

The piken has already grabbed Nine, and is trying to devour him, Nine struggles, trying to pull out his pipe, but the piken binds his arms tightly.

"A little help here, Seven?" he says calmly. I can't believe he's actually enjoying this. I use my telekinesis to pull the piken's claws apart, and Nine pulls out his staff, decapitating the beast. "Are you hurt?" I run to his side.

He laughs, shaking his head. "Not a bit. Let's warn the others." He's stopped laughing, but he smiles like he's crazy. Nine has a weird sense of humor, but I find myself smiling too. Maybe he's not the jerk I took him for.

"Command? They're bringing pikens into battle."

"We know, Eight told us. There's a piken on the street and John is battling it. I'm sure he'll be fine."

A dozen Mogs climb on to our building, and Nine is slashing at them like a whirlwind. I join the battle, throwing Mogs off the building, and smashing them together with my telekinesis. We eliminate the entire Mog force.

"Mogs are almost swarming us!"I hear John say.

"Come on, Seven. Let's get to the ground and join the real fight." Nine says.

Before any of us can do anything, Eight grabs and teleports us to the battlefield. There must be an entire Mog army on the street, and more arrive in cars faster than we can kill them. I use my telekinesis to cause the cars explode again, killing seven or eight cars of Mogs. John has turned into a human fireball again, launching fire at the Mogs, combusting them, but also leaving a trail of fire that forms a circle, one that protects us from attacking Mogs. Eight is teleporting everywhere, and once he sees a piken, he turns into something even larger (some kind of incarnation of Vishnu?): a giant man with six hands on either side, with razor teeth and sharp claws. All twelve claws tear through the pikens, killing them immediately. Nine is still using his staff, walking on the Hancock center wall, them jumping down, twirling, letting the weapon cut apart dozens and Mogs each time.

Nine laughs manically. "This is the best time of my life!" I can't agree more, but I don't say anything and continue to throw cars on top of Mogs and let the explosions deal with the rest. This is for Adelina, Hector, and Crayton, I think as a flying car triggers an explosion, blasting a Mog's head clean off his shoulders.

Then a piken from a building and jumps onto the center roof and climbs down.

Oh my god, I think. Ella and the rest are in there. Even though I'm sure Six can deal with it, I'm still worried that Sam and the others can get hurt. Sure enough, even though the beast is blasted by a bolt of lightning and falls to the ground, squashing a couple of Mog soldiers, Six speaks to me.

"This is Command. Marina, get back in here. Sam is injured."

I nod at Eight, and he takes my hand(which is awesome) and teleports me back, and then returns to the battlefield once I'm in the penthouse. Sam is clutching his side, unable to stop the stream of blood flowing from his wound. The floors are also cracked, courtesy of the piken, but I'm not worried about that. I kneel beside Sam and place my hands on his chest, and feel the icy flow that signifies the success of my healing. The wound closes, and Sam gets up.

"That was, like, so cool!" He exclaims. I smile a bit.

"Marina, we need you in here. BK is already down and joining the fight, but we need another Garde to protect Sam, Sarah and Ella." Six says.

_I can protect myself._ Ella says.

_Of course you can._ I think.

And then a helicopter arrives, holding three Mog soldiers. I turn around and try to throw it to the ground, but before I even move Ella uses a telekinesis punch and hits the fuel tank, causing the helicopter to explode.

"Ella, you just got telekinesis!" I'm too shocked to use telepathy with her.

_Wow! That's cool! I just wanted to prove that I could protect my self, and then I got telekinesis! _Ella thinks.

"Awesome, this means that we have another Garde with fighting powers." Six says. "Sam and Sarah, get a weapon."

Sarah gets a automatic pistol and a shotgun while Sam goes for the rocket launcher and sniper rifle.

"What?" he says when Six stares at him. "Might come in handy."

"Command, the Mogs have retreated." Nine says.

"Good, let's regroup here. Over."

A moment later, Four, Eight, Nine, and Bernie Kosar are in the penthouse.

"What happens now?" I ask. "Do we run?"

"Run? No, we fight back." Nine says. "We teach these Mogs a lesson and consider it part of our training."

Six shakes her head. "As much as I would love that, we would be unprepared if an attack hits us in the evening. I say we push the Mog forces back further and find Five on the way."

"Sure." Sam says. He ditched Malcolm after escaping the Dulce bace so that he could be safe, while he comes here to help us. It sounds cruel, but it's probably best for his dad. "Let's get down there and escape."

"No. I'll go with BK, Nine and Eight. After the perimeter is secure again, Eight will teleport to you guys, and we'll go at once. Ella, Marina, and John, protect Sarah and Sam."

Sounds like a good plan, and I'm sure if Nine twists the relationship between Six and Eight again she'll kick him in the ass.

"Stay safe, you four." John says as Bernie turns into a hamster and climbs in Nine's pocket, while the three hold hands, turn invisible, and teleport to the battlefield.

I look at the screen. Six and the rest are sneaking upon the Mog forces. Suddenly rain begins to fall, softly at first, but becoming a torrent soon after. Then chaos breaks out. Six sends lightning bolts all over the place, frying as many mogs as she can. Nine doesn't even use his staff, he just runs at super speed, knocking over and crushing the Mogs in his way. Eight is a giant again, slashing at the pikens and stepping on krauls with his foot. They push the invasion a few streets back, and try to decimate the army as much as they can.

I am relieved. It doesn't seem hopeless after all.

That's when the piken crashes into our penthouse and all the Mogs become visible.

* * *

**So guys, what did you think? Was it good? Chapter Eight is also a fighting scene, so stay tuned; coming to you in 3 or 4 hours, chapter 8. Again thanks mutant blueberry, Zazzy Z, Dwood and the other writer + reviewers for being such awesome readers.**

**-Arctic Blue**


	8. Chapter 8 : The General

**Hi guys, Chapter Eight is here. Okay, I promised I would add Two and Five but I changed my mind. Sorry. But anyways, another fighting scene. Enjoy!**

* * *

[Seven]

The Mogs swarm into the penthouse, clearly having come from the elevator. Damn. In our carelessness we totally forgot to activate the security systems. All that defence for nothing.

Sam must've noticed this too, so he yells: "Security systems ACTIVATE!"

"Please input password." the computer says.

"Mogadorians suck!"

"Password confirmed." I turn around and see that John and Sarah are battling the piken. The system must have been turned online successfully, because a laser beam penetrates the beast's flesh, perishing it completely.

"To the Lecture Hall!" I hear John cry out. Of course. The lecture hall, complete with drones and machine guns, will offer us the best means of defense.

The automatic turret is cutting down Mogadorians, keeping them from us. I take a look at the screen; Six, Eight and Nine are oblivious to the noise of the battle, while fighting their own. Of course, the Mogs would've disabled communications first. I grab Ella's hand and lead her to the Lecture Hall. John, Sam, and Sarah are in front of me. As soon as we close the door, John runs to the stand in the front and slams his hand on a keyboard. Drones, made out of toasters, brooms, scrap metal, and everything you can think of fly out of concave holes in the wall. A dozen Mog-targeting machine guns, which Sarah and Ella must've placed, light up and scan the buildings for Mogadorian soldiers. John sets himself on fire again, forming fireballs in his hands. Sarah holds her shotgun, ready to fire at stray Mogs, while Sam heaves his rocket-propelled-grenade onto his soldier.

What I anticipated was dozens of Mogadorians.

I was not expecting hundreds of krauls.

They charge at us, and the machine guns and drones cut them down like butter. I suppose the Mogadorians are using them like targets, sacrificing the krauls to protect themselves from the gunfire. They are such cowards that when they arrive, I smash two of them right into the mouth of a machine gun, which tears them into pieces before they even turn to ash. The drones and guns are working efficiently. Ella has teamed up with Sarah again, and while Sarah is blasting at the Mogs with her shotgun, Ella uses telekinesis to control the bullets and turn them around to kill even more. Sam fires grenade after grenade, each shot taking out dozens of krauls. John, however, surpasses all of them, plowing into the Mogs, setting them on fire. At one point he smashes his fist onto the floor and the entire Lecture hall catches on fire, burning like a huge inferno. I use telekinesis to stop the flames from burning us, but the Mogs aren't so lucky. I also see that below, a large crowd of humans and police are pointing at the John Hancock Center. I wonder what they think of all this. But surprisingly, none of them point at the penthouse. Instead, they are screaming and looking at the lower section. I don't understand, but now is not the time. I continue throwing Mogs into the fire.

Then, a tall Mog slams his sword on the ground, and the impact of the hit puts out the flames, even those on John's body. John charges at him, but halfway across the Mogadorian just sneers, and the next thing I know, John is on the floor, holding his head and screaming.

_He's casting an illusion_. Ella thinks._ Be careful._

The Mogadorian snaps his fingers and John recovers, breathing heavily. That's when I take a good look at the Mogadorian. He looks just like an ordinary man, but paler, and dark circles surround his eyes.

"Who are you?" Ella asks. "Leave John alone!"

The person snaps his fingers again, and Ella falls to the floor like John did. She screams in my mind. _Marina! Don't die! Please don't Die! Six, help me! Marina, please!_

_I'm fine, I'm fine, Ella._ I think. _I'm all right, snap out of it._

_You're all right_? Ella asks suspiciously.

_Yes, I am. I'm right here. Open your eyes._

Ella opens her eyes, and gets onto her feet. The tall man's eyes widen in surprise.

"Impressive." He says with a deep, chilling voice. "I have not seen anyone recover from an illusion that powerful. But never mind. This is where you die."

With super-human speed, he grabs the person closest to him-Sarah, and lifts her off her feet. Sarah tries to kick him, but he's too far away.

The powerful Mog sneers again. "I know you would want to save her, Number Four. But sadly, you can't." I see John clenching his fist and preparing to charge. Suddenly a Mog scout behind reports something to him. He's disappointed, and barks out a command. The rest of the Mog force retreats.

" I will deal with you later, Number Four. But consider this as a gift. He throws Sarah out of the penthouse window. John screams and runs toward her, trying to stop her fall by telekinesis.

"And my name is Andrakkus Sutekh." With that, he disappears.

[Adam]

Just before reach the penthouse, I see a girl plummeting to her death 50 stories below. Is she one of the Garde? She's certainly not a Mogadarian. Dust flies as fast as he can, trying to swerve around the building and catch her, but it's too late. She's falling too fast.

I just hope it is a human that's just died.

* * *

**So, Sarah's death. Sorry. But cheer up, folks! New legacies coming next chapter. Yes! I'm a little behind schedule but next chapter should come out today. (Readers who think I update fast: my chapters are really short.) Oh, and thanks Bob, Zazzy, and Fanatic for reviewing! You rock guys!**

**-Arctic Blue.**


	9. Chapter 9 : The Saviour

**Hi guys! Thanks for the reviews(again). Okay new legacy coming in! And first chapter where all three Povs clash together! YES!** **Keep up with the reviews you know I love them! And when you feel like it add this story as a favourite! (I'm not forcing you guys.)**

**Arctic Blue**

* * *

[Five]

_It is night. The John Hancock Center lies in plain view._

_I fly around the tall building, ensuring that my flight is not faulty, and I rise, counting the floors as I pass them._

_I see the penthouse. The Garde are sitting in complete luxury. A boy with dirty blond hair and blue eyes , holds hands with another girl. John Smith, Number Four, with Sarah Hart, I remember from my past visions. Next to them, a young girl with auburn hair and brown eyes, sits with another girl with long brown hair. Ten and Seven, Marina and Ella. A girl with dyed blond hair stares at the surveillance screen. Number Six. A feral-looking boy, with long black hair, tries to catch her attention. Number Nine. And a boy with curly black hair is staring at Marina. Number Eight._

_I know them by name. I know who they are. I know most of their stories, for I visit them at night, every time._

_Loridas once told Two that I have a rare vision Legacy; I can manipulate my visions, seeing what I want to see. Right now, I fly towards them, and I listen to their conversation. They are talking about my arrival and whether or not it is a trap._

_Once I again I can't help but hate them. They ignore me; and when I try to approach them they doubt my loyalty, and think me a traitor._

_During the conversation, Seven stands up and leaves the others, crying. I can't help but notice how pretty she is, how natural her hair and eyes look. She takes a turn and enters the bathroom. I turn around. I have my limits._

_Back in the main room I hear the others argue about who should go and comfort her. I see Six stand up and walk toward the bathroom. Six. I know everything about her. I know about Katarina, her Cépan, how she can't decide between Sam or John, how she wants to hate Sarah but can't bring herself to do it._

_I don't want to see those right now, though. I push away the vision, and try to see something useful._

_Sure enough, I am in a Mog base in seconds. I see a Mogadorian talk into his earpiece, something about a plane, missiles, and Five. It takes me a moment to put them together._

_They're trying to bomb the plane! I realize._

_And suddenly I hear the voice of Two._

"Five, wake up! They're trying to bomb the plane!"

[Seven]

I run toward the spot where Sarah fell.

John is desperately trying to use his telekinesis to raise her up, but it won't work. She's falling too fast. I try to help him, trying to put a mental hand on her back, but the tall Mog must have thrown her really hard, because she has so much momentum I almost collapse as she hits my hand really hard.

It's over. She's dead. I think.

John shouts, still trying to raise her up, but it's no use. She'll hit the ground in five seconds.

Then he smashes his right fist into his hand, and a shockwave hits me, pushing me off my feet. When I stand up again, I see that Sarah has (miraculously) stopped falling. I gasp.

No, that's not true. She's still falling, but she's traveling an inch per second.

"You've developed a new Legacy!" I tell John. He looks at his own hands, as if not believing what just happened. Chronokinesis. Cool.

I try to lift her again, but before I do, the boy with the griffin appears.

[Adam]

The girl is fifty feet from the ground when she slows down.

"Whoa, did she just learn a new legacy? Maybe she is one the Garde after all." I say to Dust. "Let's go catch her."

Dust flies back down, staying in the air beneath the girl.

"It's alright, dispel your Legacy and the griffin will catch you." I say to her.

She doesn't seem to have heard me. I look up at her impatiently. "I said…"

Wait… Did her whole body just slow down? I look closely and see that there's some kind of matter that distorting the are surrounding her, like what you see in a shockwave, only suspending in air and stable. I see that her hand is out of the matter, so I pull her out of the frozen shockwave thing. Once she's out, the matter disappears and the girl returns to normal speed, and Dust catches her so that she's sitting behind me.

"Thanks a lot for saving me." the girl says. "You're Adam, right?"

"Yes. Sam told you?" I ask, surprised. She nods.

We arrive at the penthouse and we get off. Dust changes into hamster form and I put him onto the bag containing the other Chimaera.

There are four people in the building. Two girls, one really young and one that's old enough to be around my age, a boy, with dirty blond hair and a bit younger than me, and of course, Sam.

I stand there, a little awkward. "So, um, hi guys."

The boy shakes my hand and smiles at me (I vaguely remember him, I don't know where. From Youtube?). "I'm Four, but most people call me John Smith. You must be Adam. Thanks for saving Sam and Sarah."

I thought that when I arrived, the Garde would be stepping over one another to kill me. I silently thank Sam for telling them about me.

"Yeah, I'm Adam. Nice to meet you."

I finally have found the rest of the Garde, and I can begin my revenge properly.

* * *

**How was it? Ok, I'm sorry Six fans that I brought Sarah back but most people thought that I should. Whatever. I don't know if I'll release Chapter Ten a while later, but I don't think so because it will be an extra-long chapter. And thanks again I wish I am number five, mystery fanatic no 1, Zazzy, Bob and the rest. Keep up with the reviews guys! Blue has finished today's work.**


	10. Chapter 10: The Crash

**All right, another extra-long chapter with all PoVs! Thanks again for whoever wrote a review. Also thanks a lot mysteryfanaticno1 and Hardyboyzrocksz2 for recommending my fanfic in their fanfics! And here it is, Chapter Ten(I'm sorry for posting this so late, I couldn't find my computer the entire morning, stupid me!)**

**-Arctic Blue**

[Five]

The passengers scream as another missile hits the plane by its left wing. Fuck.

I use my telekinesis to steady the plane, trying to make it crash-land while deflecting the missiles. I throw one back to the approximate location of the device that is throwing the missiles. That will subdue it for a while.

"Where are we?" I ask Two. "Are we in Chicago?"

"We just passed New Mexico. Probably we're in Kansas now? My geography sucks."

Dying at the age of twelve doesn't exactly make your geography better. I shake that thought from my head and continue on crash landing the plane. We're in a wheat field, so I don't have to worry about crashing into a building.

The passengers are still screaming like crazy. Won't they just shut up? I'm trying to save them, dammit. I look beside me and see Two encouraging me to go on.

Sometimes I don't hate her THAT much. I try to let the plane glide over the desert, and guarantee a smooth landing, when BOOM! Another missile strikes the plane, breaking my concentration, and the plane takes a nose dive.

"Are you trying to kill us all?" Two shouts, losing her calm, but not screaming her head off like the rest. I don't answer her, fearing that once again my concentration will be broken. I lift a telekinetic hand, grabbing the plane and leveling it, setting it on the ground. Two wipes away her sweat.

"All right, everybody off!" I yell. They don't need any incentive. Everyone rushes out of the plane. I almost collapse on my seat with exhaustion.

"You did great." Two says, smirking. Well, I guess saving those innocent, poor, screaming-their-heads-off, annoying humans were worth it. I smile too. My telekinesis is getting better.

Then a few passengers go back on board. They're wearing hoods, and I can see tattoos on their bald heads. Shit.

I quietly sneak out of my seat, and Two follows me. I want to use telekinesis and throw the Mogs into the airplane's spinning propeller, but I'm so exhausted that I can't even telekinetic push them.

So much for thinking my telekinesis was improving.

I really want a combat-Legacy. Sure, manipulable vision is cool, and pulling Two out of heaven with necrokinesis was pretty awesome, but none of these can help me in battle. (Two can, but it doesn't really count as a consequence of my Legacy). I was hoping with necrokinesis, I could summon whole armies of zombie-Garde, but I really haven't mastered it yet.

I open my chest, and pull out my weapon, a titanium golf club. I flick my wrist and it turns into a long, pure-black sword, that can tear through Mogs like thin air. It's magic, and can return to my hand if I throw it too far; I just need to reach out my hand and focus on what it looks like, and it flies back to me. It's pretty much the best Mog-slaying weapon I've ever seen.

I call it Azrael, the reaper of Mogadorian souls.

Two stares in envy at my sword. Her chest was lost long ago, and the weapon inside it was probably destroyed by Mogs. I take a dagger from my chest, one that I stole from a Mogadorian soldier, and gives it to Two too. (Oh, to Two too. Very funny. Not.)

"Here's you weapon."I whisper. Two looks at it with disgust, but better than having to fight with her hands and feet, right?

Apparently, she doesn't think so. She throws the dagger back into my chest.

The Mogs are searching our compartment, trying to find us. One Mog has a Mogadorian blaster in his hand. I nod at him, and Two understands. She walks over, and knees him right where it hurts.

Apparently, being kneed in the b_lls by an invisible ghost still hurts a lot. It's so painful that the Mog drops his blaster. Two grabs it up and fires at the two henchmen behind him. Two pile of ashes hit the ground.

I can't let Two get all the glory, huh? I charge, throwing Azrael right at the Mog. He ducks, and the sword clatters to the floor. Oops. Two tries to fire at him, but he grabs the blaster back, and Two with it. She's still invisible to him, but he grabs her by the neck, pointing the blaster at her approximate location.

We're at a stalemate, and he has the upper hand. If I charge, he'll shoot Two, but granting him a certain death. But I'm sure this Mogadorian will sacrifice himself to bring one of the Garde down. I don't know what to do.

Two mouths something to me.

I put my hands over my head. The Mog sees this, and thinking that I've given up, proceeds to pull the trigger.

Too late, I think. I suddenly thrust out my hand and Azrael flies back to me, puncturing a hole in the Mog's chest. Two does a backflip and dodges the sword completely. I catch the sword with my hand, smiling as Mogadorian ashes shower me.

Awesome, I think as I walk to Two. Then I trip over the blaster and fall on my face.

Shit.

[Adam]

We're in a beat-up old truck, that apparently belongs to Nine. I drive, Sam gets shotgun while John and the girls squeeze into the back.

"Where are we going?" I ask. John pulls out a white tablet from his pack and looks at it.

"Kansas." He says.

Sam looks back. "Isn't that the tablet from my dad? What does it do?"

"It shows the locations of all the Garde." Seven says. "And according to this, Eight, Six and Nine aren't in Chicago anymore. They're somewhere in Oklahoma."

"Are they trying to find Five?" Ella asks. She can use telepathy, but she's sticking to talking for Sam's sake. I discovered that I can transfer my thoughts to her,so One must've did a better job than I think

"I guess so. I think they found information while they were battling the Mogs or something."John says.

"Kansas or Oklahoma? We can't go to both places." I ask. After all, I'm driving.

"Oklahoma." Seven and Sam say at the same time, while John and Sarah say "Kansas." Ella can't make up her mind.

"We should regroup with Six and the rest before we go find Five." Sam says, and Seven nods vigorously.

"They're teleporting, Sam." John says. "We won't catch up with them. We'll have a better chance of finding them in Kansas."

"Fine." Seven says. "Let's go to Kansas then."

Easier said than done, I think. I should prepare for another day of staying awake. So far I haven't slept for 72 hours.

Being a Mog defector may have its moments, but right now it sucks.

[Five]

Two still hasn't stopped laughing.

"And you fell, like, right on your face! I mean was that the stupidest thing I've ever seen since my death or what? Oh my God RIGHT ON YOUR FACE!" she says, still laughing so hard, tears are coming right out of her eyes. "I was like, _Your sword, your sword, _and then you killed the Mog, which was pretty cool, and right when you were going to be like _I am so awesome! _You just slipped right there!"

"Yes, Margaret, please shut up. It's hard enough to avoid the Mog's attention without your laughing out loud." I say. There's small Mog base nearby, right in the wheat field. I'm trying to sneak pass them and flee for my life, but it doesn't work. The humans from the plane just jumped on a bus the pilot must have summoned and left the wreckage of the plane without waiting for us. And we saved their lives… twice! Talk about being ungrateful!

"That's the point, isn't it? No one will hear me except for you. I'm dead." Two says, wiping tears from her eyes. Under the sunlight, her brown hair literally glows, and her large green eyes sparkle from happiness (or should I say, mockery). I suddenly feel the desire to put my hand into hers.

_Oh, no, what are you thinking, Five? She's your only friend. If you spoil think like that she'll abandon you and go back to Heaven. _I think. I stop staring at here and look at the base instead.

"Here, protect my chest for me." I say to Two. "I'll try to divert their attention and lead them away from us. Then we'll regroup here and run." So far I've only seen humans in there, but I'm pretty sure there are Mogs too.

"Fine, whatever. But if you fall on your face AGAIN…" Two replies. "I will personally post it on Youtube."

I look at her blankly.

"It's a … Never mind." she says. "Now go and try to kill some Mogs. Without falling on your…"

"Yes, yes, I know." I snap, and run away to get the Mog's attention.

So much for checking out Two, I think.

[Seven]

_Setrakus Ra is trying to kill me._

_I run around the chapel, trying to find Adelina. Setrakus Ra is close behind, trying to grab me and stick me in the heart with his sword. He's a fast runner, and sometimes I have to twist and turn into pathways I don't remember anymore._

_Then I reach a crossway, with roads diverging left and right. I look back and see that Setrakus Ra has disappeared. Where is he? I look to my left and see Adelina smile at me. "I'm sorry, Marina." she says. I want to run to her, and tell her how much I miss her, when suddenly I hear a voice from my right. "Marina, I love you." I turn right and see Eight standing there, arms open, waiting for me to hug him._

_"Here, Marina."Adelina says, still smiling. I turn around. Where should I go?_

_"Right here, Marina."Eight says. I am so confused. Which one should I choose?_

_Adelina abandoned me, I think. So before the other side of me can argue back, I run towards Eight and embrace him._

_"I love you, Marina."Eight says, stroking my hair._

_"I love you too, Eight." I say, beaming at him._

_Then he turns back into Setrakus Ra and kills me._

I wake up, panting. "Eight!"

"Whoa, Seven, calm down." For a moment I think it's Nine, because everyone else just calls me Marina. Then I remember.

"Sorry, Adam. I just had a bad dream."

He nods, looking at the campfire.

We decided to park in the middle of the road and sleep here, because the car is just too stuffy to sleep in, and we need our rest. Ella, John and Sarah are sleeping, so it's just me and Adam.

I still don't trust Adam too much, because Sam doesn't really know why he betrayed his own people to help our cause. If there isn't a definite reason, I certainly won't trust him completely.

"So, why did you decide to join us?" I ask as casually as I can.

He shifts uncomfortably. "You have to understand, Seven…"

"You can just call me Marina." I say.

"Fine. Marina, the Mogadorians aren't born evil, except for the vat-born, who are genetically engineered to love conquest and expansion, namely the Mogadorian cause. The true-born are just like any Loric or any human you see. But the thing is, our parents and everyone around us just force-feed us this stuff. About how our race is the most bad-ass and everyone just has to deal with it. And after a while, even the kindest Mog becomes evil.

There's this Great Book of Ra, that just tells us to follow the Mogadorian cause, to enslave every planet we come across and to drain it of energy. And every Mogadorian is supposed to quote from the Great Book by heart."

"So you guys are peaceful but Setrakus Ra just brainwashed you guys to be his slaves." I say. It's a bit far-fetched, but Adam is saying this so truthfully that I don't doubt his words.

"It's a bit like Germany during World War II. The Germans aren't Nazis and Nazi-supporters from the moment they are born, right? It's because of Adolph Hitler and all that whatnot. Well, we Mogs are sort of the same."

"But what caused you to be different?" I ask quizzically.

He sighs. "One did."

[Adam]

And so I tell Marina everything. From the moment I saw One die, to the moment she entered my mind, to the moments of the deaths of Two and Three, and the surgery that would give her powers to me but erase her from my mind forever. When I finish repeating her last words to me, I see that John and the others have woken up. I instantly feel embarrassed, and clear my throat. Marina was one thing; she was a sympathetic and attentive listener. But what will the others say?

And then I see that the girls have tears in their eyes.

Wow. I never imagined I would be such a great story teller.

"This smoke is really thick." Ella says. "It's making me tear up."

"I know, it's really annoying, isn't it?" Sarah says, wiping tears from her eyes.

I stare at Marina. She stares at me, with her mouth agape.

Then we both roll on the floor, laughing so hard that John jumps onto his feet and light his Lumen (perhaps thinking that some Mog just materialized here.) This just makes us laugh even harder.

I'll just have to keep working on story telling.

But I don't think the tears that were in Marina's eyes were because of the smoke.

[Five]

I'm still running as fast as I can, completely dusting the soldiers behind me, when I bump into a Mog.

He trains his cannon at me, firing a single shot. I gasp as the green cannonball speeds towards me, almost forgetting to swat it away with my telekinesis. Without thinking, I thrust Azrael into his chest, spilling ashes everywhere.

Then a soldier knocks me out with the butt of his gun.

* * *

**So, Five is captured, what else is new?**

**Apparently: everything. Prepare to get the greatest shock of your lives in Chapter 12: The Truth. That being said, truth is that I really love your reviews guys! Thanks again I wish I am number Five, mutant blueberry, mysterfanaticno1, zazzyz, the one and only Bob, and everyone else that followed this fanfic or added it as a favorite or just looked at it and thought it sucked(LOL, I'm sure there are a lot of guys that do this.) Again, wait for Chapter Elven that will be posted 1-2 hours later. Arctic Blue, out.**


	11. Chapter 11: The Shadows

**Hi, guys, I'm back again. I'm exhausted but I wanted to write another chapter since I promised you guys I would write 2-4 chapters per day. *Smile*. Hope you like this chapter, it's certainly been fun writing it.**

* * *

[Five]

"Good morning, Number Five." A man walks into my cell. "How nice of you to show up."

"Show up? What do you mean?" I ask, trying to act dumb. "And what's Five?"

Without any warning, he punches me. Hard. I recoil, tasting the blood in my mouth. I try to telekinesis- slap him, but I can't muster enough energy. My hands and feet are still chained to the wall of the cell, so I can't do anything. He senses my desperation and smiles.

"Don't try to use your telekinesis."he says."Your legacies won't work here."

Won't they?Well that's news for me.

"And that was quite heroic back there, letting your invisible friend escape. (So they think Two was invisible). But you're going to regret it." he continues, sneering. "You'll have to tell me everything you know about the other Garde, or I'll resort to more...nastier methods."

I laugh because he sounds like a villain from an 80s' movie.

"You want to know more about the Garde? Oh, look! One of them is right behind you." I say, still laughing.

"You think this is funny?" He says, menacing.

"No, but it will be." I say, as Two drives a punch into his head and knocks him out.

"Thanks for letting me out." I say to Two as she cuts my chains.

"No problem, that man was starting to annoy me." She says, smiling. Once again I resist the urge to run towards her and hug her. I distract myself by taking the man's identification card and looking at it.

"Agent Purdy, Central Intelligence Agency." I read.

Two rolls her eyes. "So now we're dealing with spies instead of Mogs. Give me a challenge."

"Whatever. Thanks for taking my Chest." I grab it with one hand, and reach for Azrael with the other. Sure enough, the blade is in my hand within thirty seconds, still dark as a Mogadorian's nightmare. "Let's go."

We walk out the door, and I bump into a boy with curly hair and bronze-toned skin.

[Adam]

"Whoa, they've gotten together!" Marina says in the back seat.

"Great." I say. "I knew it was right to go to Kansas." Sam smiles guiltily.

"I don't want to pressure you guys into discussing, but we were so exhausted last night, we barely talked." John says from the driver's seat (He persuaded me to rest. I don't give a crap about driving and I'm tired, but I let him think he owes me for the time being). "And let's just get some things straight."

"Yes, when that Mog stared at me, I saw Marina dying beside me from a fatal wound." Ella says. "I think he has the ability to create illusions."

"Adam, do you know anything about these powers?" Sam asks me.

"Well, a very high ranking true born officer could create illusions. It's part of an ancient magic assisting the Mogadorians, call it a Mog's legacy if you want. It only appears to a Mog induced by a chemical mixture once supplied by Mogadore's core, and now manufactured in labs. In theory, a powerful inducing mixture can not only grant a Mogadorian the ability to change the appearance of an object for a person to confuse them, but also target an individual's mind and change everything around him COMPLETELY. Like he did, constructing a false background and images to target your fear and despair." I say.

"But how did he disappear, and why did the Mogs retreat?"Sarah asks.

"To the first question, I can only say the Mogadorian scientists have been trying to cook up a device that will send a person's controllable avatar anywhere in the world as long as there's a Mogadorian device working there. They seem to have succeeded. But for question number two…" I shake my head. "I really don't know why. Perhaps he saw Number Five, or perhaps he was trying to help the Mog force because Six and the rest were beating up their asses."

John shrugs. "I don't care. All I want to know is that his name is Andrakkus Sutekh, and I'm going to kill him as soon as I…"

I freeze. "What?"

John stares at me. "Does the name sound familiar?" he asks.

"He's my dad" is all I can say.

[Five]

"Try not to get yourself killed!" Eight shouts to me as another Mog cannonball misses me by inches.

Two is silent for the moment, kicking and stabbing the occasional stray Mogadorian. I haven't introduced her to Eight because he'd think I am crazy in believing that there are ghosts. I look at his knees and see that three scars are carved onto them, not two like mine. _That means Two doesn't exist for him. _I think. Oh well, at least I will be able to show them my scars if they doubt my necrokinesis.

I throw Azrael at another group of Mogadorians, killing one instantly and knocking down a few. I summon it back, and it punctures three Mogs in a row as it flies to my hand. Triple Kill.

At one point, we must have fought our way out of the part that restricts Legacies, because I can feel my telekinesis coming back to me. I knock over a couple of Mogs with my telekinesis and stab all of them with Azrael, mind-throwing the sword at the others. Then I see a lion behind me; did Eight just turn into a lion? It plows through the Mogs, slashing and biting. Wow.

As another half-legion of Mogs arrive, I find myself wishing for a fighting Legacy again. Come on, I shout in my mind. Is it so hard to give me just one Legacy? Suddenly I hear an explosion that seems to have originated from my feet. I look down and find that my shadow has suddenly blown apart, and the pieces enter my chest. Feeling a sudden burst of energy, I hold out my hand like I would to summon Azrael, but this time I form a fist. As quick as light, the shadow fragments detach themselves from my body, forming a wave of darkness, and charges towards the Mogs, reducing all of them to ash instantly.

Eight stares at me, dumbfounded. I grin.

After years of staying in the shadows, the shadows have finally decided to help me.

* * *

**All right, so here's chapter Eleven *yawn*. I'm really sleepy. But whatever, hoped you liked it. But don't forget the Chapter-Twelve-Big-Surprise! (OK I think you guys are going to kill me if I write it really dull-like.) Thanks again i wish i am number five, page number 5, zazzyz, mutant blueberry, hardyboyzrocksz2, mysteryfanaticno1 , DX, and the rest. Check the reviews for this fanfic because I will start to answer your questions there! *yawn again*. Ok bye guys I 'm going to sleep zzzzzzzz...**

**-Arctic Blue**


	12. Chapter 12: The Legacies

**All right, here's the shocker that you've been waiting for! (Not much of a shock, but whatever), again thanks everyone for following my story and everything! And thanks for the 40+ reviews! Though except from just saying that it's good or bad, can you guys add more suggestions? Ok, I won't bore you guys read on!**

* * *

[Five]

This time I hit the ground so hard I feel as if I've broken every bone in my body.

I look up and see Six towering over me , smiling to herself, apparently to have won again. Eight looks at me sympathetically, Nine just stares in awe at Six and Two can't keep the giant smirk off her face.

After we escaped from the base, Eight teleported us to a small field nearby, and we set up camp while he went to find sustenance. They were doubtful at first about Two, but when I showed them my two scars and Two communicated to them by writing on a piece of paper, they were in a state of ecstasy. This meant we had eight Garde left, in total. Not including Adam.

Nine was especially curious about what Two looked like, and when Two blushed, I was ready to use my newfound Legacy to kill him. Speaking of which, I'm glad that I learned such a combat-Legacy. I think it's called umbrakinesis, the ability to manipulate shadows. It's really awesome, but during non-Legacy fights I can only get my ass kicked by Six.

I drag myself off the ground and groan. "Can we go to fighting sessions where Legacy is allowed?" I ask. Eight shakes his head (he's my favorite of the trio so far, mainly because Six always beats me up and Nine always teases me). "We all have to get our asses kicked by Six before she can allow that." he says, shaking his head. "And that includes you, Two." he says to the approximate location where Two is (he can tell by the hamburger).

"What? No! I don't want to get beaten up by Six!" she says, and I repeat her words to the others. "Don't worry, Two, I go easy on girls." Six says, smiling.

"Dude, I wish I am a girl." Nine says, rubbing his arm that was twisted by Six, a couple of minutes later. When it's Eight's turn, he doesn't say anything, but just charges at Six. He's strong and fast, but Six is apparently an unparalleled expert in hand to hand combat, so he's thrown to the floor with a sickening crash after a few rounds.

When it's Two's turn, she has to wear a bracelet to let others know where she is or else it would be considered similar to using an invisibility Legacy. She puts up a good fight, and for a minute Six has to do all the defense, since all she can see of Two is her bracelet. Then she grabs Two's arm unexpectedly and throws her over her shoulder.

"All right, Six wins again." Eight says grouchily. "Now can we get to the Legacy fighting part?"

I get to fight with Nine, while Six gets Eight. After what Eight's seen me do in battle, he's relieved when I'm not fighting with him. But truthfully I doubt the extent of my power. From what I've heard, Nine has the ability to change gravity (which will be useless here), and has super speed as well as super hearing, So essentially he'll just have speed and telekinesis, while I have umbrakinesis and telekinesis. But since we get to use our weapons of Inheritance, he has a deadly looking pipe-staff that will probably run me through. When I take out my golf club, he laughs, but stops when it changes into Azrael.

"Come on!" I say. For the first few minutes I decide to humor him. When he charges at an extreme speed, I use Azrael to block away his hit. I thrust my sword for good measure, and he parries it without thinking, causing my sword to fall on the field. Without a weapon, I dodge his staff, and when he begins to twirl it, I kick his legs from below and he falls over. I summon Azrael so the butt of my sword hits his head from behind, and he gets knocked over again.

"Do you have magnets for hands or something?" he asks.

Before I can say anything, Nine uses telekinesis to lift me off my feet, while he throws his staff at me. I decide to use my power, and my shadow explodes again, this time forming a shadow wall so the staff hits it and drops to the ground. I explode Nine's shadow too, and also Eight's and Six's and Two's for good measure, and the shadow fragments all rush into my chest. This time the power is so overwhelming that I almost collapse. I form a fist again, and the huge wave of shadow charges at Nine.

[Adam]

"So, John, how about we try out that new power of yours?" Sam asks.

We're sitting in a motel room somewhere in Kansas, close to the others' location. The girls get one room, the boys get one, though John frequently makes trips to the girl's room to talk to Sarah, which makes me long for One. The girls are training Ella, trying to make her master her telekinesis.

"Sure." John says, nervously. He reminds me of myself when I first tried out my seismic manipulation, eager to try out a new power, but unsure about how it works. He pounds his fist into his hand. Nothing happens.

"How about you target this clock." I point to the alarm clock. "Try to send all of your power and channel your emotions toward it."

John nods, and closes his eyes. He pounds his fist into his palm again.

This time a gentle shockwave hits the room, suspending for a moment, then contracting and closing around the alarm clock. The second hand suddenly slows down and moves every 10 seconds.

Awesome. "Can you dispel the time-slowing sphere?" I asks.

John tries everything he can think of, pounding his palm into his fist, reaching out his hand, using telekinesis to hit the sphere of chronokinetic energy, and even stomping his feet, but it doesn't work.

"Well, I guess we'll have to do this for the time being then." Sam says, reaching for the clock and pulls it out of the sphere, which instantly disappears.

[Five]

"I'm sorry, man, I really am." I say to Nine.

Eight teleported to him and teleported back before he could get hit by the wave of darkness. The crops, however, had been completely perished. An unfortunate crow that hit the wave became a charred mess.

"What are you sorry for?" Nine says laughing and shaking his head. "Wait until the Mogs get hit by this! And Five, you are so going to use the Xitharis to switch powers with me."

I smile. Oh well, it can't hurt to have anti-gravity, super speed and the rest, huh?

"Care to have a re-match, Six?" I ask her as innocently as I can.

"No, thanks." Six smiles. "You'd better save your powers for the boys and the Mogs. But I know how we can see Two now."

"Of course!" Nine says. "We can use the Xitharis!"

Two blushes from getting so much attention.

[Seven]

As I go downstairs to get drinks, I bump into a girl.

"I'm sorry." I say, but she's blocking my way.

"Seven? You don't recognize me?" she says.

How did she know I am Seven? I look up at her. A pretty girl with blonde hair, deep blue eyes, with a confident smile. She does sound and look familiar.

"I'm sorry, do I know you? And who's Seven?" I say.

She ignores me. "We were close friends back in the ship." she says.

And then I know her, but it's impossible. Why didn't I remember before? A chill goes down my spine as I hear her next words, confirming what I already suspect.

"I am number Five." Five says.

* * *

**All right, was it a big shock for you guys? I hope so. So, who is the real one? Stay tuned and watch out for Chapter 13: The impostor. Also thanks again I wish I am number Five, Mystery fanatic no1, and mutant blueberry. Thanks you guys! The next big shock will come Chapter 15 and Chapter 20.**

**-Arctic Blue**


	13. Chapter 13: The Impostor

**Hi guys! I finished Chapter thirteen. I was interested to see who you thought would be the impostor. So, read this chapter, any changes to your predictions? Again thanks for all reviews, and guest users please create an account so I can answer your questions.**

* * *

[Adam]

We were still experimenting with John's chronokinesis. John has Sam punch him, but before the fist hits him, John tries to slows Sam's fist down, and dodge the attack.

The first few tries, John is hit squarely on the nose, eyes, and forehead. He has to heal himself continuously, but still doesn't give up. During the fifth try, Sam's fist slows down a bit but still manages to hit John's ear. After ten more tries, John can slow down Sam's attack every time and avoid being hit.

Then Marina opens our door, John freaks out and smashes his fist so hard the whole room is slowed down.

The next thing I see is John saying something at hyperspeed that sounds like: "Ogwefidn!" Which either means "O goat, why have I drowned?" or "Oh God, what have I done?" I'm guessing he said the second one. Then he moves to me with the speed of light and I'm out of the chronokinetic sphere.

"Come on, Adam, help me with the others." John says. I grab Marina's hand and pulls her out of the sphere, and she thanks me, glaring at John. John raises his hands in fake surrender. Then I look behind Marina, and see One.

No, it's not One. This girl has icy-blue eyes, her blond hair is longer, and she has a paler complexion. But she's still a knockout. I eagerly drag her out of the sphere, and hold out my hand.

She smashes into me and pins me to the ground. Being a Mog sucks.

"Wait, Five! He's on our side!" Marina yells. Five? I thought Five was a boy.

"Prove it." She says, pointing a dagger to my chin. Beautiful.

She must have seen me checking her out, because then she hits me hard on the head and I pass out.

[?Five?]

_"They have found out, my lord." The Mogadorian says. "The mission is a failure."_

_"How did the girl escape from her cell?" I ask calmly, though in reality I am fuming in anger._

_"She has developed a new Legacy, my lord. We were unable to stop her."_

_I shoot him between the eyes and watch as he turns into dust. Stupid Mogadorians. Why can they not do anything properly?_

_"Dr. Zakos ." I say. "Is our machine ready?"_

_"Yes… Yes, my lord." The puny Mogadorian scientist wipes away his sweat._

_"Target Subject Eleven. I will reduce the Garde to ashes."_

_"If I may, my lord… I suggest that we target the one that escaped. We managed to inject a testing serum into her body. It will make the process more secure. We can let her inject subject Eleven afterwards."_

_I ponder this. "All right, . You will be awarded for your service to me. Target the other subject instead. Make her traitor to her own kind."_

_Zakos bows, then retreats._

_At last, I will have my revenge, I think. These two will not fail me._

"Five! Wake up, breakfast is here!" I hear Two say.

"Fine, fine." I say, yawning. I wake up in a tent. Where am I?

Then I remember. With Six, Eight and Nine. In Kansas. Sitting on our asses while waiting for the other guys to meet up with us.

Two sits on my bed, wearing a tank top and short trousers. "Here's your cheeseburger and Coke." she says, throwing them at me.

I'm so thirsty that even the Coke doesn't seem so bad anymore.

[Seven]

"Why are you Five? Five is a boy." Ella says, looking at her.

"No, silly. Do I look like a boy?" Five asks. "And besides…" She rolls up her trouser sleeves and shows all three scars. "They can't lie, can they?"

"But we received this transmission from Five." Sam says. "He said he was coming to us. And besides," he takes the tablet from John's backpack. "This says so, too."

We all look at the screen. Sure enough, three dots where we are, four dots where the others are. This girl Five must be an impostor. But before I can says so, the screen flashes red, and another dot appears in our place.

"Five" just appeared on the map.

[?Five?]

"All right, so here's a new training session." Nine says. "We use the Xitharis to switch our powers, and then we battle using the other person's Legacies."

"Who made up this battle mode?" I ask, rolling my eyes.

"I just did. It's called reaction fights, this way we won't get confused when a new Legacy hits us in the battlefield." Nine says, smirking. "Admit defeat, Shadow boy."

"Round one, Five and Nine!" Six announces, smiling. I saw that coming.

We use the Xitharis to switch powers, and I suddenly feel a burst of energy coming from me. Nine looks around and finds Two. "Hello, sweetheart!" he says.

Two blushes.

That's it. I'm totally going to kill him.

* * *

"Ow!" I yell as Six puts the healing stone on my knee. "What are you going to do, kill me?"

"As much as I would love to do that, I'm trying to heal you." Six says. "See? You're as good as new."

"What's Nine doing?" I ask her.

Nine virtually took every shadow he could see (including the ones of the crops) and forced them all at me (yes it rhymes, I don't care). Eight teleported a little too slow and as a result, I got burnt by my own Legacy.

"He's talking to Two before the hour ends." Six says. "He's charged the Xitharis three times already. Last time I saw Two she was trying to escape."

Shit.

* * *

**So, this is (as mutant blueberry so wisely says) the calm before the storm. Chapter 14 : The Capture will be more interesting. (All right so you'll all try to guess whose capture it is). Also, to answer your questions(I should have done a long time ago)**

**To :**

**Zazzy z: Yes, I made up the illusion thing, though if you look closer in I am number four you will see that Mogs can take people into an alternative realm, I liked that but there was no mention of it afterwards so I changed it into an illusion.**

**Iwishicouldbenumberfive : Yes this will have a lot of seven-eight later on but since for now they are apart, it'll be mostly new romance.**

**DX: I'm just glad that you wrote a review. And also, I'll being organising a lot of trips to the Underworld. (I know, really sad)**

**Mysteryfanaticno.1: Eight and Five teleported to join Six and Nine, I don't know if I wrote it this way but it was meant to be like this, sorry if I made an error. Two just grabbed hold of Five's hand.**

**Again thanks, everyone!**

**-Arctic Blue**


	14. Chapter 14: The Truth

**All right, really late update again *yawn yawn yawn* Again, feel free to write these reviews.**

* * *

[Adam]

I groan as I slip back into consciousness. How long have I been out? I look around me. Only Sarah is beside me. How comforting.

"Where are the others?" I ask.

"They're in the other room, talking to Five." she says, a little annoyed that she was left here to take care of me.

"You can join the others." I say. "I'm fine."

She startles. "No, it's all right!" she says. "You did save my life."

"I think John did that." I rub my head. "Ow. Why did she (I'm still reluctant to think that the awesome girl is Five) hit me that hard?"

"Well, you were staring at her in a strange way and I think she's disgusted by the possibility that a Mogadorian could like her."

"So not only are we the bad guys, we're also scum."

"Not just scum, you're also unromantic scum." she jokes.

I smile. Every person I meet, whether Garde or human, in this small group welcomes me as a friend. The Mogadorians never did that. Ivan, my "best friend", tried to kill me. As a result I ended his sorry life when he was only 16. I don't feel guilty- he was a slave of the so called "Mogadorian Cause". I granted him a way out of that and a quick death. But these people, these Garde and humans alike, will never abandon me.

[Seven]

"My Cépan, Julia, and I were captured when I was fifteen. I had just felt the burning scar that signified Three's death, and we were scared. Julia had always been a great Cépan but she was never really brave.

That day, the usual procedure was to switch a town to live in, but since no Mogs had come and there were no signs that we were being watched, we decided to stay there until the next day. That was our first mistake. A beggar had apparently seen my scar and reported to the police. And the Mogs have eyes everywhere in the police agencies.

The second day, while we were in our car, driving to West Virginia, another car stopped us. The Mogs had found us. They killed Julia right on the spot. They tried to kill me, but failed, since the charm wasn't broken then.

They carried me to a base of theirs. I think that's the reason why the device of yours couldn't sense me. They did experiments on me. I remember feeling satisfaction every time they injected me with something lethal, only to kill themselves. My chest was taken away, and it's probably still in there. They couldn't open it and couldn't get me to open it. Too late, they realized they shouldn't have killed Julia, and now they had nothing to threaten me with. Pain I could endure. Death was not possible.

Then two days earlier, I was still in my cell when I developed a new legacy. I could form spheric acid and poison with my hands. I burned away the bars and just escaped. My poison could eat through ten Mog bullets per drop, and it was more than enough. I found that I was somewhere in Kansas, a secret base that is controlled by both the government and the Mogs.

And that's when I saw the news in Chicago about the John Hancock Center blowing up. I noticed the illusion, so I searched for you. I had to backtrack when I found that you guys were heading my way. So here I am."

Five takes a deep breath, her light-blue eyes filled with doubt. "I understand if you don't want to trust me, but…"

"It's all right, Five. We trust you." I say.

She smiles in gratitude. First Adam, now Five; I'm really getting my share of stories this week.

"Do you have other cool Legacies apart from poison-forming?" Sam asks.

"I do have a limited mental radar that tells me the position of Mogs and Garde within a quarter mile radius. And telekinesis."

"Awesome". Ella says.

John scratches his head. "But who's the other Five? And why are there now eleven of us?"

Five ponders this. "I do remember the doctors talking about a Subject Eleven. It could be him."

"But there are Ten Elders." I point out. "And there were ten Garde on the ship."

"Oh, I know!" Sam says. "Maybe he's, like, a Garde child that was born here, and he has this stupid concussion that makes him think that he's Five."

"It is a possibility. Garde children are not extremely rare on Earth." Five says.

"Yes, so I bet that's it, and… "

Someone fires a blaster next door.

"Sarah!" John yells, running away from the room.

[Adam]

We're so exhausted that nobody notices the door creeping open.

Sarah is telling me about her dates with John, which I really want to try out with One. Except that she's dead. Physically.

Then somebody hits me hard, in the head. I only have time to register : _This is the second time I've been hit on the head hard today_ before I get knocked out again.

* * *

**Oh, well, I know Chapter 13 and 14 are getting a bit boring, but watch out for Chapter 15, another extra-long chapter with all the PoVs and epic fight scenes! So, do you think girl-Five is lying? Is there an actual Eleven? Or is it all fabricated? Feel free to review, guys. Thanks again, iwishicouldbenumberfive, mutantblueberry, mysteryfanaticno1, zazzy, bob, dx and the rest! Good night! *yawn***

**-Arctic Blue**


	15. Chapter 15: The Retaliation

**Hi guys, here's the battle scene, Free Mogs for everyone!**

* * *

[Five/Eleven]

"What are the others doing?" I ask. "It's been, like, two whole days, and surely they would have arrived here by now."

Six shrugs doubtfully. "Maybe they've gone to Paradise to drop off Sarah. Or maybe they've gone to find Adam."

"Anyways, I hope they come here fast enough." Nine says, yawning. "I'm tired of cheeseburgers."

"Dude, don't complain or next time you'll get nothing." Eight says.

"Come on, let's call it another day of reaction fights!" Nine says.

I really wish my power would just let me change into shadow and then I'd be away from Nine.

"All right, but this time I choose Eight." I say. This is for me the best choice because Eight can teleport. If he throws at me a shadow wave I can just teleport away.

"Sure." Eight says. "I don't want that scar on my ankles anyway."(We just discovered that if we could see Two, the second scar would completely disappear.) We use the Xitharis to switch powers. (You know, maybe I should use my umbrakinesis to destroy that stupid stone, since it's causing me all this trouble). Eight says hello to Two kindly, and then we're ready to fight.

Eight's shadow explodes, forming a wave of shadow that come's rushing towards me. I teleport away from it and laugh as it passes me. "Come on!" I say.

I teleport in front of Eight and turns into a giant warrior, with swords for hands. I bring one of swords down at him, but he forms a shadow wall to block the hit. I teleport to his back, and try to stab him again, but he just morphs the wall into a sphere. I can't keep this up really long. Sooner or later he'll overwhelm me with the shadow wave.

I shrink into my original form, and I feint a lunge at Eight, causing him to materialize the shadow wall again. I suddenly grab Eight and teleport him about a mile away, leaving his shadow, and force him onto the ground. Nice.

"I win!" I say, triumphantly.

"Sure, Five." Eight says, rubbing his head. "It just means I can beat you normally."

"Nah, you don't have my skill."

He snorts. "Why don't you use your skill to teleport us back?"

"Sure." I say, and I grab onto his wrist and teleport.

[Adam]

"Adam!" I hear someone say.

I open my eyes and see Malcolm looking down at me. No, it's not Malcolm. The General must be playing tricks on my mind again.

"Adam, come on! Let's go." Malcolm says. It really is him.

"Where am I?" I ask.

"I saw them drag you into a car at the hotel." he says, concerned. "And when they got out of the car, I fired my gun, and they headed in that direction. I knocked out the guard that was with you."

"Thanks." I say.

"No problem." He says. "You did save Sam and I." He winces at the last word.

"Just so you know, Sam was worried about your safety. He didn't want you to get into this mess."

Malcolm nod. "I understand. But he should also understand that if you don't succeed, everyone's safety will be endangered. And I want to help you."

"Sure." I say. "Wait a second, let me try something out."

_Ella? Are you there? _ I think.

_Adam? _Ella asks.

I am relieved. _Yes, it's me. Where are you guys? I'm safe with Malcolm now._

_We were found. We saved Sarah but Marina and I didn't make it. _Ella says. _We're inside a car now. I think they're trying to take us to some base of theirs. They've injected us with some kind of serum so that our Legacies won't work. I'm really lucky my telepathy is still with me._

_Don't worry. _I think. _We'll try to find you._

_All right. _Ella says. _I'll try and contact the others, see where they are._

_We should've thought of that earlier. _I think.

[Seven]

"Wake up, Ella, I think we're there." I say.

Ella gets up, and stares at the base in shock. "What are they going to do to us?" she says.

"Don't worry, Adam and Malcolm are on their way." I say, trying to sound convinced. Ella nods fearfully.

Ten minutes later, we're in a dirty cell. I try to use my telekinesis. Nothing happens. The serum they injected me must still be in effect. I hold Ella's hand, while anticipating what would happen to us. They would, of course, eventually kill us, but first they would torture us both physically and mentally.

I wish that we weren't together and the charm was still in effect. When I survey the cell, I find that there are no windows, no bars, just a large room with an iron door. What would happen if we got our Legacies back? We aren't strong enough to telekinetic-punch the door and make it shatter.

If there are Mogs, we would kill them as soon as they entered the cell. But what if they decide to bomb us or release poisonous gases?

And then Eight appears in our cell.

[Five/Eleven]

"I just wasn't looking and maybe Eight slipped." I confess.

"Then he could be ANYWHERE!" Six yells and Two winces. "HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO FIND HIM?"

"He knows where we are. He'll just teleport to us." I say calmly.

"WHAT IF HE'S IN THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD? WHAT IF HE'S IN ANTARCTICA? WHAT IF HE'S IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN?"

"Then he'll just teleport until he reaches us. Jeez, Six! Can you just calm down?" I ask. "Besides, I'm pretty sure that he's close to our location! I couldn't teleport to Antarctica and drop him there, can't I?"

"If this time we lose because of you," Six says, seething, "I will personally kill you before the Mogadorians do."

"Sure." I say. "Where's Nine?"

"He's trying to find Eight." Six replies. I eat my cheeseburger silently.

Six pauses a bit. "Five, I'm sorry that I had an outburst like that. It's just… Eight and I are really close friends and I don't think Marina would forgive me if Eight drowned to death in the Pacific."

"He won't, he'll just turn into a whale." I reply.

Six looks at me. "Why not a fish?" she asks.

"Then he'll be eaten by a shark, judging by his luck." I say, and Six smiles, the first real smile I have seen since I saw her, not counting the days back when she was Maren Elizabeth and her Cépan was still alive. I guess the thought of Eight as a fish or a whale is so absurd. I picture a copper-skinned whale with curly black hair. It really distracts me from the tension that I've been feeling.

"So, let's just wait here until Eight teleports to us." I say, cheerfully.

Then Nine runs to us, shouting: "Mogs!"

I jump to my feet. "Where?" I ask.

"From the base, they must have sneaked up upon us this morning." Nine says. "Come on, shadow boy, let's rock them."

"I'm teleporting and shapeshifting boy now."I say. "The stupid Xitharis is still functional."

"And hydro-locomotor-boy." Six adds.

"Whatever." Nine says. "Let's just trash them."

[Adam]

"I see the base! It's just across this cliff." Malcolm says excitedly.

"Why are we breaking into bases and saving people all the time?" I ask. "I mean, it's awesome, but I'm getting a little tired of it."

_Ella? Are you there? _I think. _We're close to the base._

Ella doesn't reply, so I guess she's lost telepathy as well. I turn to Malcolm. "Ella's not responding." I say.

Malcolm shakes his head. "Doesn't matter. We'll just rush in and grab them out of there."

"Do you call that a plan?" A familiar voice says. I turn around and face the person I've been dreading to meet.

The General.

"Hello, Adamus." He sneers. "Glad to see that you've found a human friend."

I stop myself from trembling, but this time it's because of anger. "You let Ivan kill me! You let fry my brain! I hate you!"

He smiles tauntingly. "Yes, yes. I knew you were a traitor from the moment you were born. I thought about killing you, and letting Ivanick replace you. But I gave you a chance and you lost it."

I swell with so much anger, I send a seismic blast right at his feet, and he disappears.

It was a trap.

As soon as I think that, Mogadorians swarm us from all sides. I send another seismic blast, toppling quite a few Mogadorians over the ledge. But a lot more are coming. They point their blasters at us but I blast the area under his feet. It's not enough. I close my eyes, mustering as much anger as I have at the Mogs. I suddenly form a fist and punch upwards. This time, instead of forming an earthquake, the ground beneath the Mogs squad shapes itself into a earth-fist, then clutches the Mogs and throws them up into the air. I don't have enough time to marvel at my work. I make another motion, punching down. The fist does the same, squashing the unfortunate Mog soldiers that have just arrived.

I swing my arm around wildly, crushing and punching at the Mogs with my new ally. The Mogadorian forces retreat a bit. Sensing a chance, I spread out my palm, and grab Malcolm with my other hand, run forward and stand on top of the earth-palm. I raise my palm, and it rises, taking us with it. I slowly lower my hand, and soon it's like we're in some sort of "elevator" that is taking us down the cliff. I hear Malcolm laughing beside me, and I laugh too, feeling a sense of exhilaration. As soon as the palm touches the ground, I send the fist right at the cliff (without Malcolm and I on it), and Malcolm whoops with joy as the fist splits the cliff into two. We watch as the Mogs tumble down what used to be the cliff. I drop my hand and the fist sinks back into the earth. What is this power? An extension of my seismic manipulation? Or is it a new Legacy?

"That was … Awesome!" Malcolm says, unable to wipe the smile off his face. "Next time, I'm training you to use that."

I roll my eyes. "What should I do? Use the earth to lift you up and move you forwards while I walk?" I say, jokingly.

_Adam? Adam?_

_I'm here._ I think. _We're on our way._

_No, don't come in! We've escaped. _Then: _Did you do that crazy fist thing?_

_Yep._ I answer.

_I thought it was you! It worked, by the way. All the Mogs left to get you guys and there were only humans left. We escaped easily, and we're trying to regroup with Six and the rest. I'll call you after we meet them._

_Sure thing,_ I think.

[Seven]

"Eight!" I cry, and before I think about it twice I kiss him on the mouth. Ella smiles and looks away. I gently stroke his hair, and I look at his deep brown eyes, thinking : _Do you know how much I miss you? How much I think of you, dream of you? _I don't even care that Ella can hear what's going on inside my mind. For a moment, it's like only we exist in this world. Eight and I.

Then I let go. Eight seems surprised and also gratified by my welcome. "How did you get captured?" he asks, concerned.

"The Mogs caught us in our hotel."I explain. "Where's Six and Nine?"

"They're in our camp with Five and Two." I answer.

"Two?" Ella asks, confused.

"I'll explain, later. Do you mind if I borrow your shadows for a bit?" Eight asks.

"Uh, no. What do you mean?" I'm really confused now. Eight doesn't reply, but closes his eyes in concentration. Suddenly, I hear an explosion coming from our feet. I look down and see that Eight, Ella, and my shadows have exploded into fragments and are absorbed into Eight's chest. He takes a step forward and extends a fist. The shadow fragments form a wave of darkness and come crashing down at the door. Soon, not even the wall remains. I stare in shock.

"Shadow manipulation. Is that… Is that your new Legacy?" I ask, dumbfounded.

Eight smiles. "It's actually Five's. He let me borrow it for a moment. Pretty awesome, huh?"

There it is. I was sure that the boy was the impostor. Now that he just lent Eight such an awesome Legacy, I can't believe that he's not Five. After all, the girl did nothing when the Mogs attacked. And didn't she say she had a Mog radar?

I wipe these thoughts away from my mind. I take Ella's hand. "Let's go."

As soon as we step out of the cell, the alarm starts. Mogs begin running from cell doors from both sides.

"Get cover!" Eight shouts. I grab Ella and we back into our cell. Eight absorbs the shadows again, this time forming it into a round sphere. He sends the sphere right at the Mogs at one side, killing all of them, and summons another ball and blasts the Mogs on the other side. Wow. I wonder why we lost the battle the day the Mogs attacked Lorien when we had Garde with powers like this. Perhaps they were really, really, rare. From what I've seen, the boy (Five?) with powers like this might be the strongest of us yet. He may not be Pittacus, but he probably is a close second, since Pittacus has all the Legacies.

I watch, mesmerized, as Eight form two spheres of shadow, one on each hand, and smashes them together. His whole body is surrounded by fragments of darkness, and he directs the shadows to crash into the base wall. It's a bizarre sight, like the night has learned to fly, and the wall is turned into ash.

"Let's go!" Eight shouts again.

We run out of the Mog base, and see humans rushing out of the exits. I feel the rush of energy that means my Legacy has returned to me. Without speaking, I work with Ella and use telekinesis to lift them into the air. Eight telekinetic-grabs their guns and absorbs their shadows.

Boom! An explosion sounds from the cliff. We raise our heads and I see a gigantic fist, made completely of dust and rock, smash Mogs into ashes. Adam must have arrived. I gasp as the fist crashes into the cliff and breaks it into two, and what is remaining of the Mog force retreat. A few more human soldiers arrive, but I sweep aside them easily. My shadows return to me, and I know that the Xitharis force must have disappeared.

"I can teleport now!" Eight says, and I put my hand into his. Ella does the same, and we teleport to Six and the rest.

[Five/Eleven]

"Any time now." I say. Eight's Legacies are really awesome, but I wish I could have mine back.

I shape-shift into a blue man with four arms. Where did that come from? Probably Eight has been shifting into this form a lot in the past few years. I grip Azrael with my upper right hand. I see Two next to me, smiling.

"Is that supposed to be some sort of fashion statement?" she asks. I roll my eyes, and teleport behind a bunch of Mogs, slashing at them, grabbing them with my three hands and running them through with the fourth, sword hand. I see Two grabbing hold of a Mog soldier's huge, blue sword and stabbing another Mog with it. And she said no to the dagger I offered her.

I teleport to Nine, who is now a whirlwind and slashing at Mogs like crazy. He plows into a whole legion of Mogs, spitting ash from his mouth. I decide that he doesn't need help. I materialise in front of Six, who the Mogs must have marked out as an easy target, because a half of them are charging at her. Then she turns invisible, and the Mogs bump into one another. After ten of them turn into ash for "unknown reasons", I shout out loud.

"It's so hot in Kansas! I could use some rain here!" I shout to myself.

Six understands, because two seconds later the sky is above us is covered with dark clouds. A rainstorm arrives, showering the Mogs, making them impossible to see us. Then thunderbolts split the sky, electrocuting whole groups of Mogs, passing on to other Mogs through arcs of electricity. I keep the rain from me using telekinesis, and I find Two, who's more or less drenched.

"Blue man! I could really use some shelter." she says.

I extend my telekinesis to her, keeping her from the rain too. I grab her hand, meaning to teleport her to the main battle, but she pushes me away. Oops. I totally messed up.

Two smiles sweetly at me. "I thought, can you change into your hot, wilderness-boy look? I don't want anyone to think I have a crush with a four-armed blue man."

My expression was probably priceless, because Two laughs and holds out her hand. I change into myself, and take it.

We teleport next to our camp, and I drive Azrael through hordes of Mogadorians. I throw my sword into a piken, straight into its heart. I summon Azrael again and cut a Mog soldier to pieces, but I'm still in autopilot mode. Slash, throw, summon, stab, dodge, teleport, slash again. But I'm still thinking of Two, even as a huge Mog nearly cuts me into half. I try to teleport away again, but I can't move.

Nice. The Xitharis's power, curse it, must have finally worn off. I concentrate, and explode the shadows of every Mogadorian living, completely bursting as the energy overwhelms me again. I want to form another shadow wave, but the remaining Mogs are too dispersed and I might hurt Two, Six and Nine in the process. I decide to let the shadows spread out and cover the entire wheat-field, and I make them crash down onto the Mogs, killing them instantly.

I smile. That was quite a "touchdown."

* * *

**_Ok, the Garde are totally dominating the Mogs. Sorry for that, but there will be losses later. Thanks everyone that wrote a review. Chapter 25 will be the last chapter. So, thanks again! And now that the boy is revealed to be the Real Five, what will happen to John and the rest with the impostor? Read on to find out!_**

**_-Arctic Blue_**


	16. Chapter 16: The Doubts

**Hi guys, Fall of Five is coming out soon, and I guess I'll be able to finish Chapter 20 by then. So, I'm gonna give you guys a three or four day period to read the book, and then please tune to my fanfic! Thanks :)**

**And also, here are somethings that I totally messed up (epic fail)**

**1. Most important : The Xitharis only transfers one Legacy and doesn't take away your original one.**

**Way out of this mess: The Xitharis in Five's chest is another version that allows total swap.**

**2. BK: The fanfic fails to address the adorable Chimaera after he goes to fight with the Six trio.**

**Way out of this mess: The trio loses BK in their fight. BK, having survived the battle, turns into a bird and finds John later on.**

**3. The Macrocosm: In the book the macrocosm is the device that receives the crystal transmissions. I changed the way to listen to past recordings to pointing to the approximate location of the intended Garde on the macrocosm globe at that time, and saying their number.**

**Sorry for all these mistakes! But anyways please read on. Plot twist at the end of chapter.**

**-Arctic Blue**

* * *

[Seven]

When I open my eyes, I'm standing before Six and Nine. Six has washed away her hair dye, and now her hair is back to black. Nine is as wild-looking as ever, but there's a gleam in his eye that suggests he has just finished a battle and won.

Six and Nine are talking to each other, and when they turn around, they look at us, shocked.

"Hi, guys." Eight says, trying to sound as upbeat as possible. "How's it going?"

Six runs forward and hugs me. "I'm so glad you're here, Marina." She hugs Ella too. She just smiles at Eight, and although I think it's more for my sake, but I'm more than glad. I've been missing Six a lot. Technically I'm a few months older than her, but she always acts like a caring older sister. Nine looks at us, but doesn't say anything. He smiles like Six, a normal smile that is much more soft than his maniacal one. I didn't even know that he could smile like that.

"Five! Come on!" Six says.

I look around, and see Five. I'm surprised at how hot he looks. I imagined a boy that's bad-ass looking like Nine, but even though he has black hair like Nine's there's both a gentle and a rugged side to him. Maybe it's his light blue eyes.

I hold out my hand and he shakes it. "Hello, Marina. Hi, Ella. Hi, Eight." he says, smiling.

"How do you know our names?" I ask him.

"I know a lot more than your names." he says, mysteriously. He shakes Ella's hand and gives Eight a high-five(not a Hi, Five). Apparently they're friends.

"Sorry for dropping you in that cell." Five says, a little ashamed.

"No, it's all right. I wouldn't have saved Marina and Ella if you hadn't."

"Adam and Malcolm are coming to our position." Ella says. "Should we wait here or leave this place and let them catch up with us?"

"You guys know Adam already?" Five asks, surprised. "I was worried that you would kill him. One told me he was on our side..." he sees my confused look. "I have necrokinesis." Five explains. Necro… kinesis? I remember the root necro- (I think it means death). Does that mean he can bring back people from the dead? I think about Adelina, about Hector, about Crayton.

"Can you bring back people from the dead?" Ella asks my intended question.

"Sort of. It's a possibility, but I haven't mastered it yet. So far, I've only had a talk with One and brought Two back." He points beside him where a large blue sword I thought was controlled by his telekinesis is suspending in the air. "You can't see her though. Back to what we were saying. I think we should leave and let them catch up. The Mogs already know our position."

"Sure." Six says. "I agree. Let's go."

As we walk along the wheat-field, I catch up with Six and whisper to her. "We found another Five in our hotel." Six widens her eyes. I quickly tell her about the girl we met, how she said she was Five, and how the tablet malfunctioned when it was near her. I also mention the Subject Eleven that the girl said.

"What do you think?" I ask her.

Six thinks for a bit. "I still think that he," she points to the boy, "is Five. I don't know why the tablet malfunctioned, though. If the girl is Subject Eleven, then we have to convince her not to turn traitor to us. If she's not, we could always use another ally."

"That's it." I say. "I don't even know if she's Garde or not. She said she had a Mog radar Legacy, but she didn't say anything until after the Mogs in our hotel arrived. Either she was lying or she helped the Mogs. I don't know if John and the others are safe with her."

Six nods. "That being said, however, I do remember a blond-haired girl from the ship apart from One. She played with you a lot."

"That's what I thought! But everything else leads to the fact that that boy is Five. The fact that John and Nine saw a moving Garde in South America, that the tablet points to the boy, and the macrocosm was repeating his voice and not the girl's." I shake my head. "It's so confusing. But she might have, you know, cast an illusion on us to make us remember a fake memory."

"Let's first check if John sent us a recording. Anyone have a macrocosm?" Six asks.

"I have one." Five says, and he opens his chest (he's the only one that has his chest. I suppose that John has my chest, Eight's chest and Nine's chest. If they were stolen by the Mogs in the hotel… Oh, well. We don't really know what a lot of the stuff in the chest do anyways.) Five digs until he finds the stones for the macrocosm. We activate them, watching as the orbs collide with each other forming the globe of the Earth, and then we realise what's wrong. "We don't know where they are!" Nine says.

I touch the areas around Five's dot, saying : "Four." It doesn't work. Either they are out of Kansas or they didn't send us one. I shake my head.

"Wait!" Six says. She touches the area again, saying "Nine." The orb suddenly becomes fuzzy, and we hear the girl Five's voice.

"Hi, guys, this is Five. We've been trying to relocate you guys. We're somewhere in Kansas, but Mogs are on our tail, and we'd only be leading them to you if we regroup now. We have the Chimaera, and BK has found us. We also have your chests. So send a reply." Then we hear John's voice. "What we're suggesting is that we regroup somewhere safe. We'll deal with these Mogs, and then we'll give them a fake scent to follow. So if you hear this, please tell us. Chances are that the other guy (he's reluctant to say Five) might not have a macrocosm, but if you do, tell us the location we're going to regroup." Then the stones fall to the ground.

[Five/Eleven]

"Wait, what did that girl mean by she is Five?" I ask. "I mean, I am Five."

"While we were away in the hotel in Kansas, a girl approached us and said that she was Five. Our Garde-detection tablet went totally crazy and displayed her location soon after, which should mean that she is a Garde. But that makes eleven of us. I asked her about it and she said that she overheard Mogs talking about a Number Eleven while she was captured by them a few days ago." Marina tells us.

"But you guys don't trust her, right? I mean, you believe that I'm the real Five, don't you?" I ask, a little terrified that the other Garde are thinking that I'm an impostor.

Marina hesitates, but Six speaks up before she has the chance to. "Of course we trust you. You're my friend." she says, firmly. I'm relieved and smile a bit (I guess hours of being beaten up by her must have paid off.)

Two smiles at me playfully, and says: "Being a blue man with four arms does make you sorta convincing."

I'm glad the others can't hear her.

Nine and Eight are confused by this sudden turn of events, but Nine speaks up. "Why did you say my number instead of John's? I mean, it's supposed to be his voice, right?"

"I suppose that the speaker isn't supposed to be the number you say, the correct trigger for the macrocosm is the number of the owner of the chest." Six replies.

"All right. Very smart, sweetheart. And one other thing. You said that the fake Five is a girl, right? What does she look like?" Nine says, grinning.

Everyone groans.

… …

_" Zakos. " I say. "Have you succeeded in turning the girl?"_

_"Yes, lord. I have. She'll experience confusion for a few days, but very soon she will be traitor to them." Dr. Zakos says, smiling nervously. "I have linked her directly to you thoughts. You will be able to control her by thinking."_

_"Good." I say, and I shoot him in the heart. Ashes explode from his body. "That means I will not require your services anymore."_

_"My lord, was that … wise?" The General asks me._

_"I am certain it was. Meanwhile, Andrakkus, I understand your own problem. Your son, the traitor. Am I imagining things, or have you been letting him go too easily?"_

_"Never!"he says, firmly. "He dares question your Great Book and the Mogadorian cause, lord. There is only one penalty for that crime, and that is death. Not to mention all the other sins he have made."_

_"I hope so." I say. I close my eyes, and I am in another form. It's working. I see the girl traitor. I am the girl. I don't see subject Eleven. Is it possible that they have split up into groups? I shake my head. Idiotic Mogadorian scientists._

_The Mogadorians have messed everything up. They believe in my so called Great Book, and lose their entire lives with it as the purpose. To serve the Mogadorian cause. To serve me, Setrakus Ra. Abstract goals._

_I, however, have a specific goal._

_I will kill Pittacus Lore, and with him the other Garde, except for one. And when I have sucked Earth dry, I will return with Subject Eleven, and we will restore Lorien to its former glory using the resources of Earth. I will repopulate the planet, using secrets of the Phoenix Stones that only I know. And I will claim my rightful place once again, killing any Loric that refuses to obey me._

_I, who was, and should be, the ruling Elder of Lorien._

* * *

**_All right all right, only a tiny plot twist. If any one asks how Five is getting these visions and whether or not he remembers them, I can't answer you guys. But I will say that he doesn't remember these visions as Setrakus Ra. And PD106, thanks for the awesome spoilers. I, personally,loved them. Again, thanks all fans that wrote a review and/or told me how badly I messed up. (Specter Playwright and Zack619) Thanks :)!_**

**_-Arctic Blue_**


	17. Chapter 17: The Swamps

**Hi guys, here's Chapter Seventeen. Hope you enjoy it! And by the way, Fall of Five comes out TOMORROW. OH MY GOD! *Dies of excitement* , *Resurrects by Five's power* But I'm also disappointed because I'll have to wait like days before I can update my novel, but whatever. Here it is, with a Prophecy!**

* * *

[Five/Eleven]

"You were talking in Mogadorian while you were asleep." Two informs me.

I nod. Sometimes I catch glimpses of Setrakus Ra and a few other Mogs during my sleep. Sometimes I have visions instead. I don't know what the glimpses are about, though.

"Did you see anyone in Paradise?" I ask Two.

We've been walking for two days now. Adam and Malcolm are still trying to catch up with us but a large wave of Mog scouts are blocking their way. We sent John a message using the macrocosm inviting them to a safe house three days later. Six suggested it, saying it was one of the houses she used to live in while with Katarina. She says that it was bought using a lot of Loric gems, so it's big enough to house all of us. Ella tried telepathy with John, but she says the Kansas base must be in the way, because she doesn't have a "signal."

We're approaching a huge, barren land filled with swamps. It's theoretically possible for Mogs to conceal themselves inside the sand, but since we have so much Garde, none of us are really worried.

"Nope." Two says. "Still looking for One to tell her Adam joined us, though."

I nod. "I feel like I've completely mastered my shadow manipulation, but I just can't understand how to use necrokinesis." I tell her.

"Sure, shadow boy. If you did we would call you 'dying boy', huh?"

"Fair point." I say, grinning.

"Come on, let's join the others. They've already grabbed their share of cheeseburgers." Two says.

I groan. "I'll just stick with my sustenance cube." I say. I'm tired of cheeseburgers.

"How about a Coke?"Two says, teasingly.

I nod. "You know, I've actually gotten used to it. Bring me some."

Two rolls her eyes. "What am I, a slave?"

I smile. "No, you're my super-incredible-cute-invisible-ghost-bad-ass friend." I say.

"That's it?" Two says.

"And a girl that I have a crush on." I reply, hugging her.

Two smiles playfully. "And you're the impostor of the boy whom I really love."

Nine calls out, somewhere to our right. "Dude, stop hugging the the air! Your burger's getting cold!"

… …

"I'm kinda tired of looking at these swamps." Ella says.

"Can we rest a bit?" Two asks. I repeat her question to the others.

"Sure." Six answers. "Just… don't fall in." We smile at her joke. Two and I end up sitting with Marina and Eight.

Marina looks at me cautiously. I think a part of her still doubts whether or not I am the real Five. "The day we escaped from the base… " she says hesitantly. "You said that you can bring back people from the dead in theory. Is that real?"

Without answering her question, I take the Xitharis from my chest, charge it and press it to her hand. She jumps in shock when she finds Two smiling at her.

"Wow! I never… Hi." Marina says.

"Hi. Marina, huh?"

She nods. "Yeah, that's me."

Two holds out her hand and Marina shakes it. "Pleased to meet you."

Marina looks at me eagerly. "So, that means after you master your legacy you can bring back people from the dead, huh?" she asks,

"I suppose so." I say.

[Seven]

I am a bit surprised. While I use the Xitharis to switch back my powers, I start thinking of all the possibilities Five's legacy can bring. Adelina, Hector, Crayton, and all the other Cépan, all back. The Elders and much more. I almost don't hear Nine's cry of shock. I turn around sharply, and see Six pointing to one of the swamps. I see a Mog's sword and Nine's blood, and I understand. A Mog scout, hiding in the swamp, stabbed Nine in the back and dragged him into the pool.

"I'll go after him!" I yell. Indeed, with my healing, aquatic respiration and night vision, I am the best equipped for the job.

I dive into the swamp. It's a lot deeper than I expected, almost deeper than a lake. I see the Mog and Nine reaching the "seabed" and I follow them, inhaling water.

The swamp is really murky, so I can't really find out their exact location. I feel the way ahead with my telekinesis. I brush a few rocks away, and I'm soon speeding up to Nine. I telekinetic-grab the sword of the Mog and use it to impale himself. I reach out for Nine, and when I feel him, I start to heal him. The icy power of my Legacy kicks in, and I feel more power emitting from me than I have ever felt before. My hands are actually freezing. But then Nine's wounds heal and he opens his eyes. I am relieved. But he's not looking at me. He's looking at something behind me. I turn around and gasp aloud.

[Five/Eleven]

**Bubbles break the surface of the swamp where Nine is still underwater. He's been pinned down there for almost a minute. **I ask Ella if she detects anything, and she closes her eyes. "Sorry, nothing now. Marina's not answering me." Her eyes widen. "Wait! Good news, Adam has caught up with us!"

Six points behind us. "Bad news, he's brought the Mogs along with him".

* * *

**What will Marina encounter under the swamp? Will Nine die out of lack of oxygen? Can they fight back the Mog force? (Of course, they have Five and Adam) And what is John doing? Find out in Chapter Eighteen. Thanks again for people who wrote a review!**

**-Arctic Blue**


	18. Chapter 18: The Defector

**Hi, guys, Fall of Five is coming out a few hours later. So excited! But anyways, here** **is Chapter 18, the defector. Adam has finally joined the others, and the Garde are even stronger than before. But where is Four, and has he found out the truth about the two Fives? Also guys we're a little low on reviews, so please write one if you read my fanfic and liked it. Oh well, enjoy.**

* * *

[Adam]

"Come on." I say. "Ella says we're almost there."

Malcolm grunts. "Easy for you to say. We've been waking for thirteen hours straight." He sits on the ground. "Now might be a good time to use your power again."

I nod. I form a palm with my right hand, and the ground shakes as the ground beneath us breaks and forms a rock and mud version of my real hand. I lift up Malcolm and I and move my palm forwards. Soon we're zipping through the wheat-fields at ninety miles per hour.

"You might want to hold on!" I shout over the wind.

"This is a lot better than a car!" He says, lying down on the rock. "And much more comfortable."

"It drains my strength." I warn him. "I can't hold it for much longer."

He nods. "Tell me when you can't and we'll jump off." He lies on his side. I glance sideways at Malcolm. Sure, it felt like betraying Sam, bringing Malcolm back to our quest. But Malcolm gave me what I lacked since I was born. I used to say he was a patient and caring mentor, but that's just a lie. Malcolm is the father I never had.

"All right, we're almost there." I slow down my palm and we jump off. "Better finish the rest of the distance by foot or I'll pass out from exhaustion."

We're approaching a huge, barren land filled with swamps. A small group of teens are gathering around one of the swamps, shouting. I focus and see Ella, with two boys and two other girls. All of them seem to be Garde.

"There. Let's go."

Ella turns around and waves at me, but a raven haired girl with gray eyes says something and points behind them. Emerging from the wheat-fields to our left are Mogs and Krauls.

How did they follow us here?

We rush out into the open. One of the boys; one with black hair and blue eyes, rushes towards us, with a girl with reddish-brown hair following him. The others jump into battle. The other boy, with copper skin and curls, teleports to meet up with the Mog force. He shape-shifts into a giant creature with axes for hands, and begins plowing through the Mogadorians, killing dozens with each blow. He stomps on the krauls before they can bite him. The other girl turns invisible and a storm starts to begin brewing… her creation?

"Shit, Six! Don't go too much on the rain again!" the girl with reddish brown hair says. Wait… I recognise her. Number Two, the girl I tried to rescue in England but failed. The one killed by Ivan. How is she still alive?

"I'm Five." the boy says. "Nice to meet you at last, Adam."

"And you're Two." I say to Two. "How… I thought you were dead."

"Yeah, everyone does. No thanks to you. I remember you bursting into my room and tricking me."

"I'm sorry. I should've kicked you a gun or something."

"No problem. Five brought me back." Two turns to Five. "How can he see me?"

"Don't know. Should be because of all his time with One." Five replies.

"Oh." Two says. "I thought I could finally call you dying boy. Shoot."

Five turns to Malcolm, who apparently can't see or hear Two, and is watching Five and I talking to ourselves confusedly. "And you are… "

"Malcolm Goode. I'm Sam's dad."

Five nods. "Do you mind helping us a bit? We've got quite a fight on our hands."

Then the swamp near us erupts, and something crawls right out of it.

I gulp. "Yep. Seems like you do."

[Five/Eleven]

Before the monster arrived, I had a pretty good time. Two confessed that she liked me, and we had gotten along with everyone else. It was like trekking in a wheat-field with friends. And then because we're Loric, a huge monster has to arrive and spoil everything.

The monster is right out of a child's nightmare, with a deep black hide, six legs that overlap with each other, four eyes that blink and stare at us, and the head of a dragon, but with giant gills. Its spiked tail whips around, trying to impale us.

But good news is, it has a huge shadow. I summon it to my body with ease, and the familiar burst of energy flows through my veins. The monster hasn't completely reacted before my shadow wave hits it straight on the head. That blow was sure to grant a kill, but the wave just gets absorbed by the monster's black skin.

"It's invulnerable to attacks!" Two yells.

Adam, whom I heard could create earthquakes and manipulate the earth to some extent, stomps his feet, and an earthquake hits the area under the beast, toppling it over. It shakes its head and gets up, lunging at me. I quickly form my shadow wall before it can touch us, and it bangs into the wall so hard that even though it's knocked back, the wall breaks. Its black hide turns, for an instant, into a dull grey. I follow with a quick stab with Azrael, smiling when the sword goes into its flesh, and the beast roars, bleeding green blood. I try to slash it, but its color becomes black again, and my sword just bounces off. I reinforce the wall of darkness, but I can't keep this up for long.

"The beast can be hurt when its hide is grey!" I shout. I try to bump it with the wall, but it quickly jumps back, dodging the hit, and the wall disappears again because of strain.

"I'll try to bump it!" Adam yells. "Can you still form that shadow wave again?"

"I can do something even better." I tell him.

"Good." He closes his eyes and concentrates. He punches the air above him, and the ground in front of us shakes and forms its self into a perfect imitation of his fist, as large as a school bus. Holy shit. Suddenly my Legacy doesn't seem so powerful after all.

Adam punches the beast with his huge fist, and the beast staggers, shaking dust from its mouth. He follows with a quick blow to its head, and the earth-hand follows his movements, crashing into the head of the monster with such speed that the beast is blown of its feet, turning for an instant into grey.

"Now!" Adam says.

I summon the shadow fragments of the huge beast, and thrust both of my hands forward, aiming at its disgusting head. The shadows start to form between my fingers, and I unleash a deadly black ray, penetrating the beast's flesh and leaving a hole in its head. The beast drops to the ground, dead.

"Not bad." I tell Adam. He nods, smiling.

I wipe the sweat from my face. Six and Eight are still battling the Mogs, apparently winning. Behind me, Marina and Nine appear from the swamp, Marina carrying Nine on her shoulders.

"He's not breathing!" she shouts.

Two kneels down beside him. "I think he needs CPR!" She looks at me expectantly. "Five?" She asks.

Shit.

* * *

**So, Five kisses his true love, Nine. And now I guess this fanfic just added gay factors into it. Sorry. But whatever, Chapter Nineteen is following. Chapter Twenty will be released two hours later, and then we can all sleep and read the real novel. Yes! Again, reviews are running short, and I know, this story's pace is getting a little slow, so I'm gonna speed it up a bit. So thanks, everyone.**

**-Arctic Blue**


	19. Chapter 19: The Calm

**Hi, guys, I'm a little pissed off my e-book didn't deliver Fall of Five in time, but now I have it, and I'm currently reading Chapter Eight. Chapter 20 of my fanfic will come out tomorrow, I guess. Then I'll give you guys an one-week period to finish the book and everything (from what I've seen, it's pretty thin), then we'll continue and finish Part 1: The Spilt Ashes with 25 chapters. Then I'll be writing another, short fanfic called the Journey of Eight (no spoilers yet) that will take Eight's PoV, but it's linked but is not the sequel to this fanfic. This fanfic will continue after I've finished the Journey of Eight, and we'll finish it with 50 or so chapters. Sorry if I'm boring you guys! Anyways, read on.**

* * *

[Five/Eleven]

Nine groans, turning over and spitting water from his mouth. He opens his eyes and sits up.

"What the… Please tell me nobody kissed me." He says, smiling a bit.

I look away from him, ashamed. He widens his eyes.

"You did… You kissed…"He sputters. "Dude, are you gay?" he cries out, furiously.

"It was CPR!" I say defensively. "I saved your life."

"How am I supposed to have a girlfriend now everyone thinks I'm homosexual?" He says, moaning.

"Do you think I liked that?" I retort. "Your breath stinks. Go chew some mints."

"You mean you want to try it again after he freshens his breath?" Two says, grinning. Adam doubles over with laughter, since he's the only person aside from me that can hear her.

"Eight and Six are still fighting." I divert the subject. "Let's go help them out."

Eight and Six, as it seems, don't need our help. They're turning Mog scouts to ash as we arrive. Eight has turned back into human form, and is teleporting everywhere and killing Mogadorians with a large sword dropped from a Mog soldier. Six is sending lightning blasts while remaining invisible, and before I can pull out Azrael the Mogs are gone.

"What were you doing?" Six yells, turning visible again. "We were fighting an entire army!"

"Marina was underwater." Ella explains. "Adam and Five were battling the huge beast. Nine was, well, Nine was kissing Five."

"What?" Eight chokes. "Nine was what?"

"I did CPR and saved him." I sigh. Six stares at me as if I'm crazy. "Why does everyone… never mind." I point to Adam and Malcolm. "Don't you want to see our latest friends?"

Marina, Ella and the rest introduce themselves. They're in general friendly to Malcolm, but Six, Eight and Nine say they don't trust Adam and are going to keep an eye on him.

"Adam saved our lives by taking on the beast back there." Marina reminds them.

"Sure." Six says, though she doesn't sound too convinced. Well, it's a start.

[Seven]

"You should trust Adam." I tell Eight.

"He's a Mogadorian. And you know my history with them. You know how Reynolds died."

"Being a Mog doesn't mean that you're evil." I say. "Just… give him a chance to prove that he's not a traitor, all right?. He saved Sarah, Sam, and all of us around the swamp earlier."

He nods. "All right. It's just… something doesn't feel right. How did the Mogs know where we were and set up a trap for us? I don't think they could've gotten ahead and positioned their forces in time if they didn't know where we were going. And back there, when Nine was grabbed by that Mogadorian… It was like they already knew we were there. I know no one could be a traitor, but still, it's starting to worry me."

"Worry less." I tell him. "Besides, you have me." I imitate his manner of boosting my confidence. "Even if you get hurt, I can heal you and everything. And besides, we're powerful now that we're together."

"Sure." He smiles. "About that kiss…"

My insides melt. "Yes?" I ask cautiously.

"I was thinking since we were in the middle of a battle and everything, I owe you a better one."

I grab him by the arms and kiss him so passionately that his eyes widen in surprise. I don't need telepathy to figure out his next words.

"I love you, Marina." I hear him say.

"I love you too, Eight." I tell him.

I kiss him again, but this time I'm filled with melancholy. What will happen to our relationship? We are Garde. The hunting of our kind will never stop until we kill Setrakus Ra and defeat the Mogadorians. Until then, my love with Eight is only a dream, a wish that can never be fulfilled.

But all the same, it is a beautiful dream.

[Adam]

I admit, I was expecting a warmer reception.

Ella and Marina were, of course, quite friendly, and Five and Two welcomed me pretty much, though Two continues to claim that she hates me for not saving her. I'm pretty jealous of Five's power, of how he can attack monsters with destructive shadow laser beams, but before I said anything he asked me if I wanted to use a little stone called an Xitharis to switch powers for a while. I agreed a little too enthusiastically.

But Six, Eight and Nine are constantly watching me, waiting for me to show that I'm with the other Mogs. Marina pulled Eight over to talk to him privately, and after that Eight warmed up to me, even asked me if I wanted a cheeseburger. Six and Nine, who Ella tells me are devoted Mog-killers, aren't persuaded though.

At night, Five asks Malcolm if he knows about a Number Eleven, and he thinks for a bit. I know that he's still trying to remember his past with the Garde, the memories that were taken from him in Dr. Zako's lab.

"My memory is a little fuzzy, but I do remember something Brandon told me." he says.

"You mean Henri?" Six asks.

"Yes, Number Four's Cépan. He told me about something when he learned while he was defending Lorien from invading attacks. He said that no one really seemed to remember if it was true, but a rumor had spread that there were eleven Elders in the start. One was exiled, and there were ten left. He told me that he was sure that this piece of information was important and that I should pass it to you when you were ready, if he wasn't there to tell you." Malcolm answers.

"Eleven Elders…" Ella says. "Who's the eleventh?"

Malcolm shakes his head. "I don't know. Brandon didn't say."

"So, is it too much to hope that both the Elder and his successor is fighting against the Loric?" Five asks. It IS too much to hope for, but we could use some hope these days.

"The girl that claimed she was Five said that you were Eleven." Marina tells Five. "For all we know, she could be right. Maybe you were brainwashed by the Elder and he made you think that you were Five to protect, I don't know, his secret identity or something."

"Oh." Five says. "You may be right, but I'm pretty sure that I'm Five. I mean, Six proved that my chest was, well, my chest, right? So maybe Eleven is still out there."

"Or she may be that girl." I say.

"Let's just hope he she is on our side." Nine replies.

* * *

**Ok, so that's Chapter 19. Chapter 20: The Cold, will come out tomorrow afternoon. Sorry if this story has taken on a no-casualties, all-victories story line. I'll be sure to change that. And by the way, enjoy the real novel! And be sure to review. Arctic Blue, out.**


	20. Chapter 20: The Cold

**Hi guys, Arctic Blue here. It's been, what, five days since I last updated? Sorry, guys. I've been reading the real novel over and over again, and I have to say, I'm a little disappointed that it's too short. I've decided that I continue my fanfic based on the previous chapters because I really want to continue writing this plot. But anyways, this is Chapter 20: the Cold, which is pretty ironic since I'm in Florida now and it's far from being cold. Enjoy!**

* * *

[Adam]

"Do we have any messages from John?" I ask Five.

We're still walking around, trying to find a highway and a car to drive. Six's safe house is pretty close to us, and while our group is pretty much tired to death, we haven't had an encounter with the Mog forces since they surprised the group of Garde while they were by the swamps. We believe that the base is out of Mogadorians and are probably telling Setrakus Ra that his forces are getting beaten up and he'd better send an elite army soon. We don't know what to expect, but Six says that once we regroup, we'll go back to wherever Setrakus Ra is and confront him right in his stupid hideout. It sounds good to me.

Six and Nine have finally given up on being hostile. They're treating me normally, but they're still waiting for me to show that I'm a traitor. Marina tells me their stories when we're walking and they're not listening, and I can understand their reactions. If I wasn't a Mogadorian myself, I would have killed every Mog in existence, defector or not. The only person that I feel can relate to me in this new group is Five, though I think that's mainly because he has my previous experience, seeing ghosts that no one else can see in normal circumstances.

Right now, Five's scouting the road ahead, looking for Mogs hiding under cover. When I ask him the question, he sets down his chest.

"Guys, a little break here." Five waves everyone down. "Let's check for messages from Four."

We take out the macrocosm again, and touch the areas around and on Kansas. It seems that they're getting closer and closer to Six's house, because the globe becomes fuzzy halfway across the highway we're supposed to take.

"Hi, guys, this is Sam. Six, we received your message and we're heading to your safe house. We've eliminated the Mogadorian scouts." he pauses nervously. "We know you're still in Kansas. So hitch a ride and we'll meet up."

"There's something he's not telling us." I say, after the recording has been played the second time.

"Yeah, I noticed. I guess the other girl must've been acting strangely. At least they noticed." Six snorts.

"Or they could have believed her lies and now think that we're some sort of traitor-conspiracy." Nine points out.

Thanks for the comment, Captain Optimist." Five tells him.

Nine shrugs. "I was just pointing out a possibility."

"Guys, instead of arguing, can we please figure out a plan?" Marina tells us. "We still have a car and a highway to find. If we don't we're going to die out of exhaustion and dehydration."

"And you call me Captain Optimist." Nine retorts.

Malcolm speaks up. "Getting to the highway will be pretty easy. I've seen the maps before I got here. It;s only a five-hour walk from here. But getting a car…" he shakes his head. "That will be no easy feat."

"Hey, no worries. I'll just teleport to a car factory, in, I don't know, the nearest city, and grab you guys a truck or something." Eight says.

"Why don't you get a car now?" Six asks.

"Do you think anyone can drive in this?" he spreads out his hands. True, we're still surrounded by swamps. "I'll get you a Land Rover when we reach drivable surfaces."

"You bet." she replies. "We're exhausted." Then as if struck by a sudden thought, she looks at me expectantly. "Adam, I take it that you can control the movements of the earth, right?"

I nod. I can already tell where this is going.

Two understands, and smiles sweetly at me. "If you let us ride on the hand of yours for half an hour, we'll never doubt your loyalty again. Ever."

[Five/Eleven]

Second later, we're zipping towards the highway in dust hand that Adam summoned out of the ground. I have to admit, it's quite an exhilarating ride.

"This is awesome, dude!" I hear Nine shout over the wind. "The Mogs will never catch up with us at this speed!"

Adam smiles, but doesn't break his concentration, focusing on moving the palm forwards. I lie down with Two, relaxing. This sure is comfortable.

"Five? I have a question." Two says, in a quiet voice, so that the others can't hear. We haven't talked to each other alone since Adam joined us. I guess I'm sort of missing those times when we lived together in a middle of a hut in South America. Sure, we were alone, without the Garde, be these days were simple. Get food and water. Eat and drink. Sleep. Escape when you see a Mog coming. If they catch you then kill them because they can't kill you.

Well, sort of simple. I shake these thoughts away from my head.

"Yeah?"

"What do you think will happen after everything is over? I mean, after we defeat Setrakus Ra and all that. We have to return to Lorien and everything, right? But we still don't know whether or not the ships can still go back or how to restore Lorien and so on."

"So what?" I ask. "We can figure it out."

"That's not what I meant." Two replies. "How about we just… stay on Earth? John has Sarah and Sam, we have Adam and Malcolm. We're not going to take them all to Lorien, right? And anyways, Lorien is just a dump now, thanks to Setrakus Ra. I don't think how anyone can fix that."

I ponder her words, silently. She does have a point. But as much as I would like to agree with her, I don't want to stay on Earth for the rest of my life. Sure, it's a good place to live in, but with the constant wars and global warming and whatnot, it doesn't sound half as appealing as the formal Lorien.

"I don't know too much about that." I say, carefully. "Lorien sounds like a better idea. I mean, it's our home planet."

"No, it's not." Two replies. "It was our birth-planet. Earth is our home."

I sigh. "Sure it is. But still, I think the others are more inclined to go back to Lorien and restore it."

"Then it would be a planet with eight people. Me, you, Four, and Six to Ten. Can you imagine a planet with only eight people in it?"

I smile. It does sound a little ridiculous.

"We'll talk to others later, Two."

"I hope so." She smiles too. "It'll be really lonely if we were in Lorien all by ourselves."

"All right, everybody off." Adam says half an hour later. He's totally drained of energy. Marina kneels beside him, restoring some of his power back to him, and he sighs in relief. Now I guess we have to include power restoration to Marina's list of useful powers derived from her healing Legacy.

"We're about two miles away from the highway, I think." Malcolm says. "Let's go."

We're about to continue walking, but Eight stops us. "Wait." he says. "I think there's something here."

"Probably just a stupid rabbit." I tell him. "Nothing to worry about."

"No, it's something huge. I have a bad feeling about this."

Nine nods. "He's right. We both have precognition, dude. And something tells me that we're not going to like this place."

I pull out Azrael from my chest. I hadn't noticed it at first, but a cold sensation is working itself into my body, filling my lungs with dread. And the feeling is heading straight from the wheat field.

"There." I point.

On cue, a beast springs out from the field, waving claws and spikes at us. I grab Two and we back off.

"Where are they getting all of these monsters?" Nine shouts.

On closer inspection, the beast has long, sharp spikes attached to its front arms. Extending from its side are two other arms, this time with claws for hands. It stands on its two large scaled feet, and its face resembles a hideous cross between a lion and a dragon.

Before anyone can react, the beast stomps on the floor with its feet, creating a huge shockwave that blows us off our feet. Ella, Nine and Malcolm, the ones closest to the blast, get knocked out cold. Marina, Two and Six are on the ground, still conscious, but it doesn't look like they can do anymore fighting. Without thinking, I create a wall out of shadow to protect all of us. Adam unleashes an earthquake, trying to blast the area under the monster, but its too quick and dodges the strike. He closes his eyes and summons his earth fist, but quickly drops it.

"I can't summon any more!" Adam shouts. The ride had completely drained his energy. So now it's just me and Eight. And I have to protect the others.

"I'll deal with it. Five, give me your sword." Eight says, taking Azrael. He charges at the beast, but before it can slash him he teleports behind it, driving a blow into its flesh, forming a wound on its scaled legs. It drips deep green blood, but the beast doesn't seem to notice the pain. It lunges at Eight again, but this time Eight reappears on top of his head. He cuts a deep gash on its neck, and this time the beast roars with agony. Eight returns to the ground, cutting a gash on its other leg. He teleports again, but makes the mistake of teleporting back to the beast's other leg, which was what it expected him to do.

"Look out!" I shout.

The beast swivels around and sinks its teeth into Eight's shoulder, roaring as he winces from pain. He tries to teleport away, the pain is too much for him. The beast, sensing victory, follows with a stab from one of its spikes, thrusting deep into Eight's heart.

And everything stops.

[Seven]

I stare, in horror, as the beast impales Eight on the heart. Without even thinking about monster before me, and ignoring the others as they try to distract the beast, I run to Eight's side, trying to heal him with my Legacy. I put my hands onto his chest, and trying to conjure that icy feeling again, but before I even touch him I know that he is gone. The wound was fatal.

"Marina. It's no use." Eight says, his voice barely a whisper.

"No, Eight." I tell him, and I try to heal him, my hands moving frantically over his body. "I'll heal you. I'll save you." I start to cry. I wish more than anything that I can heal him, but I can't.

"Marina, I…" His breath catches in his throat. "I love you."

"I love you too, Eight. Believe me, I will heal you. I won't let you die." I say, as tears drip down my cheeks. Eight looks at me, smiling.

"I love you more than anyone else in the world." he continues, as he slowly ceases breathing. "And I… and I want you to know…" Eight abruptly stops, and for a horrible second I think that he has died, but he finishes the sentence. "… that we will always be together." He closes his eyes, and I bend over his body, sobbing, as the scar appears on my ankle. I take his hand, ignoring the pain, just crying my life out. Eight, dead. My nightmares have come true.

The beast ahead of me roars in pain as Five stabs it on the foot. It crashes its claw into him and he flies back, crashing into a nearby tree.

I stand up. I will not allow any of my friends to be harmed again, after what has just happened. Something inside me snaps. I've never felt anger like this before and it's almost comforting. The icy feeling of my healing Legacy spreads through me. But it's different somehow. Bitter and freezing and dead**.**

It's like being given a choice. As if someone, or something, speaks through my head. _Now, choose, Marina. Choose between the person you have been and the person you should be. _I close my eyes. I understand that there are two options, two Legacies, and one of them is too horrible to think about. And despite how furious I am, I choose the other one. Out of the two Legacies, one filled with coldness but the other dwelling in death and vengeance, I choose the cold. I choose the person I have been.

I extend my hand. The cold transfers itself into my fingertips. The beast is advancing towards me, and is already eager to finish me off like it did with Eight. It strikes with its deadly tail, swinging down at me with the speed of lightning. Six screams.

I grab its tail, forming a layer of ice on my hand to protect me from the spikes, and mustering all my emotions of anger, force the cold feeling of my hand right at the beast. Frost starts creeping up from the ground, spreading at such a quick pace that it should have been impossible. The monster roars, trying to escape, but my Legacy is too strong for it. Soon, it's completely encased in a huge ice sculpture of its past self. I focus again and the cold feeling returns to my hand, taking form as an ice dagger, cold to my touch. I hurl the dagger straight at the frozen beast, breaking it into thousands of tiny ice shards, covering my face with telekinesis as they shower me.

There's a small silence. Everybody is overwhelmed by shock. I kneel beside Eight's body, encasing him in a large, transparent ice coffin, but leaving out his hand, which I take again.

"Let's bury him." I say shakily to my friends.

[Five/Eleven]

_"I have succeeded. The boy is dead." I say._

_ "Congratulations, my lord." Andrakkus replies, bowing. "But if I may, why kill him first? Any of the others would do. If not Eleven, then that young girl. Or even Pittacus's incarnation."_

_ "Pittacus Lore is a fool!" I shout, my anger overwhelming me. "He won the throne by mere trickery. During our duel, he fled for his life. I told him that I would come back, but he ignored me. He was prepared to save his life in return for the massacre of his people! Do not speak to me of that weakling."_

_ "Ye… Yes, my lord." The General says. "I will not refer to him again."_

_ "And to answer your question, I chose the boy because he is one of the most respected of his group. No one would think twice and realize it was the work of their traitor." I tell him._

_ "It is a wise choice, my lord. Does the traitor show any signs of rebelling against your, ah, glorious rule?"_

_ "Oh, she is rebelling, of course. The boy was her friend." I say, smiling. "But she can not overcome my superior power. This is why we must keep the device functional at all times."_

_ Andrakkus bows, and leaves. I close my eyes and connect through the girl, choosing my next target. There. The one in the corner. This death will come as a shock to the others._

_ I smile. My revenge will come. A little late, perhaps, but it will come. I am sure of it._

* * *

**SORRY SORRY SORRY Eight fans I really am sorry PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! I know how everyone hated how Eight died in the novel but please don't hate me or kill me or stop reading my fanfic. Again, I'm really sorry. I know everyone is like: First you don't update for days and now you kill Eight WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?! But in my defence it happened for a reason. All right kill me if you want but please don't stop reading my fanfic, I promise I will do everything to placate your anger.**

**Okay that's the formal apology, and anyways, PM me if you hate this chapter or if you hate the real Fall of Five. Chapter 21 will be here tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Now I'm going to go to Pittacus Lore's and ask for a Legacy to fend off the angry mobs. Arctic Blue, out.**


	21. Chapter 21: The Aftermath

**All right! Hi guys, this is Arctic Blue, and here is Chapter 21 as promised. Sorry I released it too late but I spent most of the day going to Pittacus Lore's and returning my mob-fending Legacy. So, anyways, I accidentally posted my FIRST DRAFT onto Chapter 20, so it has tons of mistakes. I updated it and please read it again. And also thanks for not killing me for killing Eight! Enjoy: Chapter 21 The Aftermath.**

* * *

[Adam]

Malcolm is driving. Nine and Six have all fallen asleep. Five and Two are in the back, and Ella is trying to comfort Marina while she's crying softly.

Even I can't process the shock of what happened. I only knew Eight for a day, but I knew him enough to know that he was a good person. He didn't deserve to die, especially at such a young age.

_Well, that's what happens. _I think. _When will my kind ever leave them alone? I saw One, Two and Three die in front of my own eyes. And now Eight is dead. _I feel guilt at being a member of such a despicable race. A race that kills children for "expansion and the Mogadorian cause." A sick, brainwashed race. Despite the fact that every Mog was force fed the Great Book and was forced to be the monsters they are now, I feel no pity for them. One look at Marina and it is enough to remember. They are beyond our mercy.

I glance back at Marina, who's still crying and burying her head on Ella's shoulder. It should be the other way around. Ella herself didn't take Eight's death so easily. When she gained consciousness and found the fourth scar on her ankle, we were afraid that she would pass out again out of grief. We managed to comfort her, but Marina has refused to speak to anyone. Nine and Six are mourning but trying to keep our group together. Malcolm hasn't said anything yet, but he's definitely shocked too. Five has this determined look on his face, and he's saying something to Two. I can see Two shaking her head and whispering something.

Back on the wheat-field, Marina showed a powerful new Legacy. She was able to easily perish a monster that Five and I combined would have trouble killing. No one is pressing her to show her Legacy and try to train her, but I think Malcolm is planning that the first thing she recovers.

We drive silently for hours. Finally, when it's starting to get dark, I say to Five: "Let's check with the others." Funny how I always seem to be the only one to remember this.

Five pulls out his chest and takes out the Macrocosm. He points directly to Six's safe house and says "Nine." Immediately the globe dims and becomes fuzzy, confirming the suspicion that they're already there.

"Hi, this is Sarah." Sarah's voice comes out of the recording. "John and Sam have gone to buy supplies, and I'm here with Five. I guess you guys are already on your way. So, just come in. We'll have to ask for a code word before you guys come in and the code is your planet. Should be easy enough to remember." She slows down and speaks in a more cautious tone. "John and Five had another scar earlier this day. Is everyone all right? Five said… it was the Lorien symbol for Eight. John hasn't been exactly convinced that he's fine. So just get Eight to send us a message and he won't have to worry." The globe shrinks into the orbs again.

I look at Five. How can we reply to that? Good thing Marina is asleep. If she were still here she'd probably cry again. Five reaches for his crystal but I stop him. No need to inform the others so soon. No need to quash their hopes yet. Five nods and takes back his hand.

"How are we going to tell them?" Two asks nervously.

"They'll have to see for themselves." Five answers. "If anyone asks, I'll take the blame. I was the only one conscious then that was able to protect Five. It's my fault he died." He says, ashamed.

"No, it's not." I say firmly. "It's no one's fault. The Mogs killed him. If anything, I'm to blame for his death."

"You guys, stop arguing! Eight has already died. There's no reversing that." Two tells us.

"There is." Five mumbles.

"No, there isn't." Two stares at him. "I will not let you risk your life to…"

"Wait, wait, wait." I interrupt them. "There is a way to resurrect him? But I though you said you can't make any trips to the Underworld anymore."

"I had a vision while I was sleeping when we were waiting for the truck." he answers. "I know how to make another trip back there."

"But the vision also told you that you might DIE in the process!" Two says, almost shouting.

"So what?" Five asks. "If I succeed, I get to go to heaven. If I don't, I die and I get to go to heaven. Either way, Eight gets saved."

I nod. "It does sound reasonable."

Malcolm, who was overheard our conversation, says: "It does seem like a big risk. Let's first find out whether or not we can make the trip more safe. If so, we'll do it. If not, then the decision is everyone's. We'll have to vote."

"Sure." Two answers. "But if you guys don't stop him from going there, I will kill you all, Legacy or not."

I smile, the first time since Eight's death. "Sounds fun."

[Seven]

I thought I felt sorrow before. I thought I experienced what it felt like to lose a loved one. I thought I could handle another death.

I was wrong.

After another memory of Eight suddenly comes to mind and I start crying all over again, I think to myself: _It's over. Stop crying. _And when I think I might get better I'm hit by another wave of sorrow and I'm suddenly overwhelmed with tears. _Please stop. _I think to whatever is controlling my thoughts and emotions. _I can't take it anymore. Please stop._

I have to endure the pain over and over. I think about ending it. About forming another ice dagger and thrusting it into my heart. But a faint desire for vengeance stops me. A faint glimmer of bloodlust, so faint that it's barely there.

Vengeance. I want to take revenge on the Mogs. Not just kill them, but torture them. Make them feel pain until they die of it. I wonder if that's my second Legacy, the one I dismissed. Well, even though I'm not regretting my choice, I find myself hoping for revenge as I feel the pain of Eight's death on and on.

Ella is taking my hand and I bury my head into her shoulder. Ella, who has always been with me. Technically I'm the "older sister" and I have to take care of her when she was an outbreak, but I enjoy the comfort that she gives me while I weep. A warm sense of security. The sense that no matter how bad things have become, they will get better. A feeling of hope.

I remember a phrase that John once told us about, one of his Cépan's favourites. "Don't give up on hope. It's the last thing to go. When you have lost hope, you have lost everything. And yet when you think all is lost, when all is dire and bleak, there is always hope."

I certainly hope that it's true. We all could use a little hope now.

I take a deep breath and steel my nerves. The pain has subsided a bit, dulling and fading until only a feeling of emptiness remains. I feel drained of energy, of my feelings. I lay back on my seat and try to sleep.

* * *

**All right, so after this chapter i will release one chapter in a week. So thanks everyone for reviewing! After Chapter 25 Part 2 will begin and the whole fanfic will be suspended. I will write a new, short 20-chapter fanfic called the Journey of Eight. After that is finished I will continue this one.**

**So, feel free to review. And write about what you hope will happen next! Can Five succeed in going back to the Underworld? Who is the real Eleven? What does Setrakus Ra have to do with Lorien and Five? Stay tuned, everyone!**


	22. Chapter 22: The Reunion

**Here's Chapter 22 The Reunion. Basically nothing much happens in this Chapter so don't die of , thanks everyone that reviewed my fanfic, and I'm gonna celebrate my 100+ reviews by announcing that I will be writing a brand-new fanfic next week, Lorien Legacies: The Lost Files #7 Alternative Version: Eight's Legacy. This is mainly because basically no ones writes fanfics of the Lost Files, and I'm not going to write Eight's PoV in my main fanfic, so why not do it in the lost files. However, it's quite important so be SURE TO READ IT. Okay, enjoy Chapter 22.**

* * *

[Adam]

"Everyone wake up." Malcolm says. "We've arrived."

Aside from Five, Malcolm and I, almost everyone is asleep. After much yawning and stretching, we leave the car, and walk to Six's house. It's almost as big as Nine's penthouse, with three stories and a huge garden. The lights have been turned on, and I vaguely see John's outline in the window. He hurries downstairs.

"Lorien." Malcolm says while knocking on the door. The door swings open.

John looks around and his face drops. I guess he was looking for Eight. "Come in." he tells us. "Everyone's waiting."

We walk in and see Sam, Sarah and the girl waiting for us. There's an uncomfortable moment, when nobody does anything and Sam and Sarah register Eight's absence. Both of them, however, have the decency to not say anything.

Nine breaks the silence. "So, you're the one that claims to be the second Five, huh?" His words are sarcastic but his tone is flirting.

"And who's the first one?"

Nine points back to the boy Five. "That would be this dude,"

The girl stares at him, probably deciding whether to poison him or telekinetic-rip him apart. Five puts his arms over his head in mock surrender.

"All right, we're not in a mood to argue right now, but let's just leave it like this." Six interrupts. "We understand that you're the fake one. But you're obviously a Garde, and we hope you're on our side… "

"Use your brains, Six." The girl says, smiling. "Last I checked, you were pretty smart. Don't you remember me from the ship?"

"I do." Six confesses. "But memories can change. And we've proved that the his chest is Five's and he has Five's voice and everything else."

"They can change, too." The girl points out, but it's clear that she's doubtful herself.

"Both of you have a point." Malcolm interrupts. "But since we can not identify the real Five by merely memory or belongings, we'll leave it like this and decide later on. For the time being, we trust that you're not a traitor." He says to the girl.

"Is this your dad?" She asks Sam, who nods. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Goode. If you don't want to call me Five, then Sophia would work. It used to be my Earth name."

"Sophia? That sounds familiar," Nine asks. "Are you the one the raised a big pile of rock in Argentina?

"Sort of." Sophia answers.

"Oh. And I thought your name would be more… bad-ass." He replies.

"Yeah, just like Stanley." Four adds.

Nine scowls. "Watch it, Johnny Smith."

"Why doesn't anyone from Lorien get proper Earth names?" I ask. Sophia stares at me and I'm afraid she might knock me out again. But she just walks over and says. "I'm sorry I hit you the last time. The others have convinced me that you're on our side." She holds out her hand. I shake it a little over-enthusiastically, and Nine glares at me.

"Six, can you, uh, show them where to sleep?" Four asks. "We'll discuss everything in the morning."

"Sure." Six replies, glancing at Marina, who seems to have recovered a bit. "Right this way, Adam, Malcolm, Five, Ella, Mar and um… Stanley." Stanley groans and mutters something about girls. We head off in the direction she's pointing, but Sophia grabs Five by his shirt and says: "You can come with me. I need to talk to you." Five gives us a assuring smile and walks away with her. John and Sarah look nervously in her direction.

"It'll be all right." I tell them.

"No, it probably won't." Sam answers. He points to his the left side of his shirt, which I now see has been eaten away, by … poison? Acid?

I hope Five's all right.

[Five/Eleven]

I walk into what seems like Six's training room with Katarina, a large empty room, big enough to be a basketball stadium. Sophia takes a chair and gesture for me to sit down.

"So, Five." She says the word sarcastically. "Why are you pretending to be me?"

"I am Five." I reply. "I'm pretty sure about that."

"Who told you that you're Five?"

"Loridas? My Cépan?" I answer.

"Where's your Cépan?"

"Dead. He's been dead since I was six. I don't even know his name."

"Oh. I'm sorry about that." She drops her sarcastic attitude.

I nod. "Yeah, it pretty much sucked. Since then I've depended on Loridas's charm until it broke when John met Six. It hasn't been easy. I was almost caught once."

"I can relate to that. I've been held prisoner for one year until last week. I broke my way out of my cell, like Six did." I notice that she's acting a bit strange as she says this, so it might not be the true story. I'll be sure to check the real one when I get back my vision-manipulation.

"She actually snuck out of the prison." I correct her.

"Who told you that?" Sophia asks, curiously.

"It's one of my Legacies. I can manipulate vision, or my dreams. I basically know everything about Four, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, and Ten. I don't know anything about you because you haven't showed up until now."

She's a little surprised. "That's quite an interesting Legacy, though I would advise you to stay out of my past. Do you have any more?"

"Only two more." I answer. I explode my shadow and unleashes a shadow ray aimed at the floor, forming a hole 10 feet deep. Sophia widens her eyes. "Awesome. And the third Legacy?"

"I'll show you in the morning." I tell her. "It's a little hard to believe. What about you?"

She curls her palm, a little similar to me when I'm summoning shadow spheres, and strokes of luminous green appear on her hand. Sophia touches the wall near us and it burns as the poison comes into contact with it.

"That's pretty cool, too." I point out. "So, does it come with a long-ranged attack?"

She nods, and forms a sphere of red acid in her palm. She closes her hand and it dissipates. "It's stronger than the poison, but it comes with a cool down time. I only use it in emergencies. My other Legacy is this sort of mental radar. I can know when Mogs and Garde are close by. That's what confused me. I thought you were a Mog impostor, but you're definitely a Garde, born in Lorien."

"You can sense that?" I ask.

She nods. "But that would make eleven of us."

"I thought you said there was something called a subject Eleven." I point out. "You could be her."

She shifts uncomfortably. "Yeah, well, I'm not sure if Eleven is a Garde. And he or she's pretty much on the Mogs side. So for the time being, let's not argue who's the really Five. You go by Five, I go by Sophia. We'll just assume one of us is a Garde who escaped from Lorien."

I shrug. "Sounds fine to me."

"One other thing." Sophia tells me. "Eight died, didn't he?"

"Yeah." I lower my head. "It was sort of my fault. Everyone else got knocked out and Adam was drained of energy. I was the only one then and I couldn't protect him."

"It's nobody's fault." She tells me, reminding me of Adam. They sure do seem alike, but Sophia's a lot tougher, while Adam's got a nervous-energy to him, like he's some sort of Mog outcast who can't adapt to us Loric. Other than that, something about them is similar. I can't really place it. "Were there any Garde that were really close to him?"

"Marina." I say immediately. "I mean, everyone else, Eight was a great guy and everything. But Marina and Eight, they were... inseparable."

"Marina." Sophia repeats. "We were friends back in the ship. She was quite a lot older. I remember telling Julia (she was Kentra back then) that we were sisters."

I nod. Why don't I remember anything from on the ship? I tell myself that I was too young then. But Sophia clearly remembers EVERYTHING, and I think I'm a few months older than her. And when I think of the day we left Lorien, I can only remember Loridas. And Nine other children.

"Yeah, you do seem a lot like Five than I do." I joke.

"Memories can be changed." I wonder why she's arguing in my defence. "You better head off to where you're sleeping." Sophia nods. "We've got a tough day of training tomorrow."

* * *

**So, this really complicates things. Looks like it's hard to determine who's going to be Five after all. But anyways, don't know about Chapter 23, but it will certainly be about training and have a battle scene. It will be the last chapter before Chapter one of the Lost Files 7. Then I'll finish 24 and 25, and I'll devote my time to writing the Lost Files.**

**Don't forget to review! And anyways, PM me anytime you like to talk about the real Fall of Five, my fanfic, my upcoming fanfic, your fanfic, or anything at all, because I'm really bored. Stay tuned.**

**-Arctic Blue**


	23. Chapter 23: The Training

**This is my longest chapter yet... I know, even longer than Chapter 5 10 15 and 20, which are supposed to be super long. I'm starting to write longer chapters, hope you don't get bored! And ANNOUNCEMENT MY LOST FILES FANFIC IS OUT ONLY FIVE PEOPLE HAVE REVIEWED! So, for you guys and girls that don't know, go check it out, I think it's called Lorien Legacies the Lost Files Eight's Legacy. The one that has the pic of the boy walking in darkness. So please read it! And please just REVIEW! Or fav it or follow it, whatever. Enjoy!**

* * *

[Adam]

I'm in Two's room, where she's supposed to share with Sophia.

"I hope Five's fine." Two mutters.

"He will be." I assure her. "He's a Garde. Sophia will take it easy on him." She nods. "And anyways, he's pretty powerful. I don't think she could beat him in battle."

"Sure." She says. "I really hope I can have a Legacy. Instead, I only have lifetime invisibility and the power to hold on weapons from Mogs that Five kills."

"You will. You're a Garde."

She corrects me. "I'm a dead Garde. I died before I had any Legacies. I'm sixteen now, and I don't have any, so I'm quite sure I won't get any."

"You're still a strong fighter." I say.

"Yeah, right. Six and Nine and Eight can pretty much beat me up whenever…" she stops herself. "Sorry. I wasn't thinking."

"It's okay. I didn't even know him anyways."

"I did, sort of. He was a great person. He reminded me of a younger Five, with out the dark side, and more playful. He didn't deserve to die."

"Yeah, about that." I stare at my feet, a little ashamed. "I'm sorry about your death, and everything. I was a coward, I should have let you have a chance to fight for your self. Instead I was worried for my own life. I should have listened to One."

"A Mog giving an apology?" Two raises her eyebrows, grinning. "You're welcome. And by the way, One misses you. Five and I saw her when we were training in South Africa. She said she left you in Washington or something?"

"Ashwood Estates." I say, surprised. "Five summoned her? Is that even possible?"

"More like she came by accident."

I haven't though much of One lately. I think I overcame the pain of losing her a long time ago, back when I was with Rex and Dust. Which reminds me, where's Dust and the others? John said that he had them in our last transmission. I miss Dust too. He'd been a great companion.

"Let's go find John and Nine." I tell her. "I want to see Dust."

"That's your Chimaera?" Two asks. I nod. "You go. I don't want to see that creep." At first I think she means John but then I realise that she's thinking about Nine.

I close the door and walk to where Four and Nine are sleeping. I knock.

"Come in." John says.

I open the door, and instantly see a small wolf cub chasing a beagle. Dust and BK. He sees me, and runs into my outstretched arms.

"I missed you too, Dust." I say, scratching his ears.

"He's your Chimaera?" Nine asks me incredulously.

"Yeah, he is. What?"

"Don't they attack Mogs?"

"This one doesn't." Dust barks/howls happily. I turn to John. "Where are the other Chimaera?"

"Downstairs. I've got one that's more or less recovered. The other four are still having trouble." He answers. "I don't think they'll be much use in battle for now." He sees my nervous look. "But they will be." John adds.

Dust turns into an eagle and perches on top of my shoulder. "Where's Sam?"

"Talking with Malcolm." Nine says. "He's trying to convince Sam that he has to join us."

"We should have at least one adult with us." I say. "It's plausible." I don't dare say the real reason, the more selfish reason- I want to be with Malcolm, even though if it means endangering him.

John nods. "I hope Sam sees sense. And by the way, does Marina show any signs of getting better?"

"She's with Ella and Six." I reply. "They're both trying to comfort her. It's working, at any rate."

"I hope it does. We can't afford to lose both Garde in one occasion." John says. He puts his hand on his forehead, sighing. "I knew that Eight was dead, but I hoped that he wasn't. He was a great guy, and other than that it was extremely possible that he was Pittacus."

"I thought you were Pittacus." Nine points out.

"Maybe." John says, though he sounds doubtful. Five opens our door and I'm relieved to see that he has no traces of poison or acid on his clothes.

"Hi, guys." He says, rubbing his eyes. "Adam, can you come with me? It's really time to sleep."

"Sure." We say goodbye to the other group, and head back to our room, bringing Dust with me. "How was Sophia?" I ask.

"We've decided on temporary truce." He studies me closely. "You have a crush on her, don't you?"

"No!" I yell, a little too loudly. "I'm just asking, out of curiosity."

Five nods. "I hope not. Because then you'll be disappointed."

"What makes you think she won't like me?" I ask him casually. "She might."

"No, she won't. You're a Mog and you guys are evil. Mogs and Lorics can never be friends." He sees my horrified expression and laughs. "Just joking, … friend."

I smile."I sure hope so. You know, you remind me of Malcolm when he first met me."

"I know. He is really cool, huh? I mean anyone who's like me should be extremely cool, but still..."

I snort. "Really."

"Yeah." It's his turn to look horrified. "You didn't know?" He exclaims and I crack up. We've arrived at our room and I open the door. "By the way, Adam, Sophia seems pretty nice. She's Six and the outside but Marina on the inside. I'd say that you should go for it."

"Oh my Ra, I thought Mogs and Lorics could never date."

"Sure they can." He studies me, and we lie down on our beds. I set Dust down on the bed stand."You know, if you can get a little more tan, trim your hair, get some more muscles, you might be as hot as I am, after all. Well, maybe quite a lot less hotter, but you can't blame me, huh?" We crack up again. I never knew that Lorics and Mogs could laugh this much.

And as arrogant as Five is, I can't ignore his fashion tips, can I?

[Seven]

_Marina? Are you asleep? _Ella thinks. _We're starting training. You don't have to join us, if you don't want to._

I groan and open my eyes. Where am I? A large, clean, and impeccably white bedroom, two large beds, a large screen TV. Six's mansion, in the room I'm sharing with Ella.

I still haven't completely recovered from the shock of losing Eight, even though Ella and Six have been wonderful in comforting me. I'm really grateful to both of them, but it still wasn't enough. The pain, which can be eased by comforting, is gone. What's left is the emptiness that marks Eight's death. The emotion that can never be healed.

For a moment I want to tell Ella to leave me alone and start training without me. Then the faint glimmer of the desire of vengeance comes to me again, and I'm motivated by it as I get to my feet, and put on a fresh pair of clothes that Ella must have prepared for me.

_I'm coming. _I think. I open the door and find Ella and Six waiting outside.

"Are you all waiting for me?" I ask Six.

"We thought that you needed some time on your own, but we weren't sure if we needed our help or not." Six replies, rubbing her eyes.

"You've been awake the whole night?"

"We took turns sleeping." Ella tells me.

"God, I… " I'm overwhelmed by gratitude. I pull Ella and Six in and hug them. They're surprised, but look pleased.

"You're welcome." Six says. I feel guilty for being so jealous of her a few weeks ago. "You would have done it for both of us." I suppose that's true.

"Don't worry about me." I tell them. "I'm fine. Let's go to training."

"Five, Sophia, Two, Sam and John are already there. Sarah and Malcolm's doing some research. Nine and Adam are doing who knows what." Six informs me. "Sophia was pissed off at Five because she woke up and found Two drinking water. Totally freaked out when she saw the cup suspended at mid-air."

I smile. "Yeah, Five's Legacy does have that effect."

"You should have seen the look on her face." Six tells me, laughing. "I suppose I'm being mean, but the way Sophia orders everyone around, you'd think she owns this place. It's my house, after all."

That sounds like the Six I know. I think, happily.

"Five and Sophia's worked out a truce." Ella tells me. She's talking for Six's benefit, because she's still working on multiple telepathic conversations. "I hope none of them are traitors."

"Everyone hopes that, Ella." I say. She's grown quite a bit, and is almost as tall as Sam now. Her hair is a bit longer and her expression is much more confident, not at all like the nervous young girl I met at Santa Teresa.

Sophia is talking with Nine when we arrive at Six's training room. (It's not like Nine's where there are drones and turrets and everything, though it's large and empty, so it'll be a perfect place for one-on-ones.) Nine is obviously flirting, but Sophia ignores his more flirtatious remarks. John's with Sam, and Five talking to thin air so I guess he must be with Two. When we arrive, John speaks up.

"Marina, if you need more time, I understand. You don't have to do this."

I shake my head. "I have to. I can't make Eight's death meaningless."

John smiles. "That's the spirit. So, where's Adam?" He asks. "We can't stop training without him."

"I'm here." A voice speaks out from the entrance.

It's Adam, but something's different with him. He's taken on a different hairstyle, not his customary short buzz or messy long hair, but an ordinary one like a normal boy would have. He's wearing normal jeans and a t-shirt, and his skin's a lot less pale, but most of all he's washed and the red circles from lack of sleep have disappeared from his eyes. He doesn't look like a Mog, anymore. He looks … normal. And somehow I can't help but agree he looks a lot hotter. Everyone else is staring at him in shock.

"I took your fashion tips." He tells Five. Then he notices everyone staring at him. "Is this awful?" He asks, embarrassed. "Sorry."

Six shakes her head. "Adam, this is…"

"Awesome." Five finishes. "You look just like me. All right, even a bit cooler. I told you my fashion tips would work, dude." We all smile.

Nine's obviously annoyed for some reason. "All right, whatever. Now everyone's here, let's start. Adam, you're with S…"

Adam interrupts him. "I've come here to watch. I can't use my legacies here. Starting an earthquake or pulling a giant fist out of the ground isn't exactly constructive."

"Sure. Anyone else not training?" Nine asks. Sam raises his hand. "I won't. I want you guys to train your Legacies. I would be in the way."

"All right, Sam. You can teach Adam, Two and Ella hand to hand combat over there. I take it you're more experienced."

"Sure thing." Sam grins. I can tell he likes the idea. Five gives Two some gloves to wear, so that the others can see her.

"So, now that's settled, we'll do it like this. John's with me. Six is with Sophia. And Marina, you're with Five." Nine says.

What? I stare at him in protest, but he doesn't notice. "All right, guys, half a minute preparation, and then we'll start with Six and Sophia." The pair glare at each other.

Five walks over to my side, while I'm watching Sam teach Two a move. Two gives a thumbs up to tell him she's ready, and they start wrestling.

"I'll take it easy on you, I promise." I nod, but I'm not exactly reassured. From what I've seen, Five's power is hard to get a hold on.

"Who told you that I won't win?" I ask him.

"Oh, now I'm so scared." He mocks me, but I smile anyways. Five's teasing is a lot better than Nine's. Part of him reminds me of Eight, but he can also have a darker side to his personality. We sit at the side of the stadium together with John.

"Round 1, Six and Sophia!" Nine calls.

Six walks to the other side of the stadium. She has a confident smile on her face. Sophia is unfazed, though.

"Fight!" Nine shouts.

Six turns invisible immediately, and Sophia curls her palms, forming deadly green poison on them. I don't know where Six is, but it seems that she's charging at Sophia. Suddenly, Sophia turns around and launches what seems like a strike at the air behind her. Six shouts in pain. She must have creeped behind her invisibly. The poison tears through her defenses, and for a moment she flickers visible. Sophia charges at Six, but she dodges easily the blow easily and turns invisible again.

How did Sophia know where Six was? Then I remember. She's got a Mog-Loric radar as one of her Legacies. Of course she would know Six's location. I catch Nine smirking and instantly know that he must have set Six up. That loser.

"Is that all you've got?" Sophia asks. "Bring it on."

I process the situation. Six's invisibility is practically useless, and she can't summon a storm here. Which means she's only got telekinesis, but Sophia has it as well. Six would excel Sophia at hand to hand combat, but still, Sophia has the upper-hand. I wonder why she doesn't launch acid at Six and get it over with. Then I realize; she's been pissed off, too. She wants to let Six succumb to her "power" dramatically.

I find myself silently cheering for Six. John must've established a friendship with Sophia so his expression's neutral since Six is his friend as well. Nine's cheering for Sophia, and Ella's with Six like me.

Sophia must've sensed Six getting too close because her hands light up with luminous green again and she strikes at Six, but the latter must've dodged the blow, because I can hear no signs of pain. Sophia forms a red sphere of acid on her right palm and launches it at wherever Six is. Six dodges it, but the acid burns the floor, and triggers some kind of chemical reaction. The area before Six burns with red hot flames, forcing her backwards. Sophia smiles triumphantly.

Then the flames leap up and launch back at her. Too late, she's forgotten that Six's weather manipulation comes from a basic elemental manipulation, which means she can control fire. Sophia manages to bat away some of the flames with her telekinesis but one burns her leg severely, and she screams with pain. Six puts out the flames and pins her to the ground for ten seconds.

"Six wins!" John yells triumphantly, and Six turns visible again. She's badly burned on the arm, but Sophia's burn must be fourth-degree because she turns pale and (probably) doesn't feel any pain anymore. Part of her nervous system must be burned. I tend to her first.

I put my hands on her knee and concentrate, trying to summon some of that icy feeling that accompanies my healing Legacy. None comes and I know she must be even more badly burnt than I thought. Six, who's already cured by John, walks over and realizes the importance of the situation.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have used such intense flames." She mutters.

"Don't be." Sophia grits her teeth. "It's a match, anyways. Sometimes you'll have to take some extreme measures."

Six nods, and I think she's gained some respect for Sophia. "John?" I call out. "I need some help, here." He comes over and puts his hand on Sophia's knee, too. Together we manage to heal Sophia leg, but she still walks with a limp.

"I'll be fine." She says, and sits on the floor to the side of the stadium. "You guys continue." I think that Six is still guilty for what happened, because she sits next to Sophia, who doesn't stop her.

"All right, it's me versus mini-Pittacus now!" Nine shouts. John rolls his eyes. "Stop it with the name-calling, Nine." He tells him.

"Hey, I want to be more dramatic. Imagine if everyone knew that I kicked Lore's butt."

"He has a new Legacy." I warn Nine. I don't tell him what it is for John's sake. Nine just shakes his head and says. "The more impressive the better."

Nine is more likeable now than before, but I still wish John kicks his butt hard enough. John takes a dagger from his chest and Nine his customary staff. They walk to their positions.

"Fight!" Five shouts.

Nine runs up the wall as usual, and John shines his Lumen at his own feet, engulfing himself in flames. He throws a huge fireball at Nine, but Nine just batters it away with his staff, while jumping onto the ceiling. When he's directly above John, he jumps down and tries to land a blow with his staff, traveling at sonic speed. John grabs his pole with his fiery hands and throws it to the back of the room. Nine lands on the ground on his feet, clutching his pole, but still smiling.

"You've gotten better, Johnny boy!" he shouts.

John launches two fireballs from his hands, and extends his fire to his dagger, throwing it as well. To top it off, he himself charges at Nine. It's almost like Sophia's situation and I'm almost certain he'll get burned, but Nine backflips and lands on the wall to his back. He throws his pole away and uses telekinesis to catch the fireballs, balancing them on his hands, creating a telekinetic layer to prevent his hands from catching fire. He lobs them both back at John , dodges the dagger and leaps to the ceiling. John's blown back by the pure force of the fireballs. Not wanting to miss a chance, Nine jumps down again.

John, who must have expected this move, pounds his palm with a fist. I smile. Should've seen that coming, I secretly scold Nine. A shockwave hits us and the chronokinetic-sphere completely engulfs Nine, slowing him down significantly. John steps back and watches as Nine "floats" to the ground. He snaps his fingers, dispelling the sphere.

Before he can react, though, Nine jumps to his feet and charges again at sonic speed. He strikes a blow with his staff, that lands on John and sends him flying across the hall.

"I have enhanced hearing, Johnny!" He yells in delight. "How can I not know what you new Legacy is?"

John tries to pound his fist again, but Nine concentrates and wrenches them apart with telekinesis. "Not so fast!" he shouts again. He jumps on the ceiling and runs again, hurtling his staff at John, which knocks him out cold. Yelling in victory, Nine waits for ten seconds.

"Nine wins!" Six shouts, clearly unhappy with the result. Ella gets a fire extinguisher and we extinguish his fire. I heal him and he opens his eyes, clutching at his forehead.

"Ow." John says. "I can't believe I lost again." He takes his dagger. Nine pats him on the back. "Don't worry, you put up a better fight than last time. You couldn't have expected that I knew your Legacy." John nods.

"All right, last group!" Nine shouts, sitting to the side with John. "Marina and Five." I grin nervously at Five, who smiles back and goes to pull out Azrael from his chest. I open mine, looking for something that could help me in battle. I see a small, wood hair brush that seems out of place. I touch it, and the familiar cold feeling of my healing legacy returns to me. It glows bright blue and grows and changes texture, into a beautiful silver bow. In the middle is the loric symbol for seven, which is still glowing icy blue.

"It's beautiful." I say. "So that's supposed to be my weapon?"

"Seems like it."says Five, who's waiting for me. "Where's the quiver and arrows?" I look around again and pull out a small leather pouch. This time it expands into an empty quiver, made of the same silver as the bow. I reach into it and my fingers close onto an arrow. I pull it out and it glows, like the symbol on my bow, only this time in a bright, turquoise color. I look at the empty quiver, puzzled. I reach in again and pull out another arrow, identical to the first one.

"It has an infinite supply." Nine says, whistling. "So, that's what you want to use?"

"No." I sigh. "I don't know how to use this. I'll just go without a weapon." I put the bow and quiver back to my chest. "I'm ready."

Five walks to the opposite side of the stadium. "Fight!" Six yells.

I charge at him and in the same time try to punch him with my telekinesis. Five catches the blow with his hands and pushes it away. When I'm with in distance, I strike from his left but telekinetic-strike him from the right. He ducks and tries to kick my legs but I jump and do a backflip. He slashes with his sword, and I dodge the strike, at the same time wrestling the sword away from him, and kicking him further back. I try to land the blow myself but he just extends his hands and Azrael flies from my hand to his. Darn.

I curse silently again as he explodes his shadow and launches a shadow sphere, which I dodge easily. He blasts a ray of darkness from his hands but I divert its path with telekinesis, forcing it to the wall instead. My hands burn from the force of the beam, but fortunately he doesn't notice. He summons two spheres with both of his hands and crashes them together. I manage to separate the shadow fragments before they charge at me.

Five furrows his brow, and I know he's starting to fight me for real. He explodes my shadow and John's to add more power to his attacks. "All right, game's over." Five says, smiling, letting the fragments rush to his chest.

I watch in horror as he extends his his hand playfully at me, before he realizes that he accidentally triggered the shadow wave. Sure enough, it charges towards me, faster than Nine, blacker than a nightmare.

Before I know what I'm doing, I catch the wave with my hands and the temperatures drop significantly. Ice crackles as the wave freezes over like the monster I defeated, turning so brittle I break it easily by punching it. I look down and see that I'm surrounded by a circle of frost.

Five recovers from his initial shock, and realizing that I'm not so vulnerable to his attacks after all. He launches another wave, even larger than the previous one. This time I raise my hand and the edge of the frost circle rises, thickening into a strong wall. The wave of shadow charges at it full speed. The ice cracks, while I'm unperturbed inside the circle. I decide to go offensive and grab one of the turquoise arrows that I dropped, with my telekinesis. I extend the ice to it, encasing it until it's completely frozen, but making the tip even sharper than before.

I throw the arrow at Five, and he easily raises his own shadow wall to deflect the hit. I expected him to do that. As the arrow hits the wall, I spread the ice from the arrow and cover the sphere of shadow with a another layer of ice, not stopping until everything inside the sphere (including Five) completely. I break my wall and walk over to Five's, shattering the ice surrounding him, and pinning him to the ground for ten full seconds. He's shivering from the cold and does nothing to stop me.

"I win." I say since the others are staring at me in shock. "End of training." I heal both Five and myself, and head over where Six and Ella are watching. (Sam's class has been dismissed since I've started to dominate Five). Ella looks at me in awe and Six in pride. "Come on, let's order lunch." We head out of the stadium.

* * *

**All right, how did you like the battle scenes? Poor Sophia/John/Five. Which was the worst battle scene and which was the best? (You don't have to answer this if you don't want cause I'm just being curious.) Again, start reading my new fanfic! AFTER YOU REIVEW THIS ONE ^-^. Also, here's another question that doesn't need to be answered: what do you hope to see in my Lost Files fanfic?**

**Anyways, bye! Next time I update will be the day after the day after tomorrow or next week.**

**Arctic Blue**


	24. Chapter 24: The Dream

**Hi, guys! Thanks for all these reviews! I'm sorry I haven't updated in a week but this chapter was the hardest to write. It includes MAJOR twists, so don't freak out. You'll know, in the end, who is the real Five. Also, to find my other fanfic click on my profile and check my stories. My other fanfic is Eight's Legacy. I'll be putting this one on hold and writing that one next week. So, Chapter 24, the Dream.**

* * *

[Seven]

I munch on my pizza. Delicious. I take another indulgent bite. I guess I don't show it, but my fight with Five had completely drained my energy.

I look over the table and see Five shivering and talking to Adam. I decide to take a risk and talk to him.

"Hi." I say as casually as I can. "Should I get Six to turn the air conditioner off? Because you don't look like you're too hot."

"What? I am hot." Five remarks, grinning (and shivering at the same time). Adam snorts. "But if you could, thanks a million." Six takes the remote control.

"So, do you need to chill off a bit, or is this temperature fine?" Six asks. "Because I'm fine either way."

Five just laughs. "You know what, Six? Never try to sound bad-ass when you talk to me. You'll just get your butt kicked."

Six doesn't reply and just punches some buttons on the remote. Instantly, the temperature drops to forty degrees. Five yelps and hugs Adam to get some warmth, who shoves him away in disbelief.

"Now, who's more bad-ass?" Six asks him, grinning triumphantly.

"Me! I mean you! I mean… just make it warmer!" Five tells her. We all laugh at that. When the temperature returns to normal, we all finish our plates, and walk to another room where we're supposed to train in groups. This time, I'm reminded of Nine's Lecture Hall. It's not as large but there are targets, weights, guns, and dummies.

"All right, groups are: Five, Two and Adam. Six, Ella and Marina. Sam, Sarah and John. And I'm with Sophia." Nine says, while Sophia rolls her eyes. Maybe she isn't so hope less after all. Our chests have already been brought to us by Sophia. I feel a stab of pain when I look at the chest next to mine's, Eight's chest. I grab the lock but it doesn't click open.

"Weird. Katarina always said that our chests will click open when we die." Six says. I nod. I remember Adelina saying that too. I look back at Eight's chest. Staring at it. Thinking about how it will never be opened.

"Let's just stick with your chest first, Marina." Ella suggests. I know she's trying to prevent me from thinking too much about Eight. I open my chest and pull out the hair brush and pouch, which expand to my silver bow and quiver. I sling the quiver over my shoulder. There's a white leather strap that fits over my shoulder like a backpack, and I attach it to the quiver. I hold the bow with my right hand.

Six nods in appreciation. "It fits you." She says. I look in a mirror and see that she's right. With the bow and quiver I acquire some sort of gracefulness and fierceness to my features. Ella puts up a target forty feet away and points to it.

"Come on, Marina, shoot." She points to the target.

"Are you serious?" I ask. "I've never used these before and you want me to shoot that far?"

"They're in your chest for a reason." Six says. "Just go on and try."

I level the center of the bow with the center of the target, and with another hand reach out into my quiver and pull out a glowing arrow. Somehow this seems familiar and I manage it with ease. I attach the arrow to the bow and pull back the string, closing one eye to focus on the target in front of me. I let go, steadying my other hand.

The arrow soars in the air and lands straight on the bulls-eye.

Ella whoops and Six claps me on the back. "I guess your corresponding elder must be ace at archery." I stare at my bow in disbelief.

Ella sets the target even further, about a hundred feet away. Even with my enhanced sight I can hardly see the bulls-eye, but I hit it again. And again, at two hundred feet. At two hundred and fifty, (A/N: It's 75 meters for those readers that are comfortable with using, well, meters.) I take a shot so accurately that my arrow lodges in the tail of one of my earlier arrows.

"Try freezing the arrow and then shooting it." Six suggests. I nod, and wait for the cold to return to my finger tips. I crouch on one knee, grab an arrow from my quiver, and freeze it. Without even looking closely at the target, I lodge it in my bow and shoot it right in front of me. When it touches the bulls-eye, I touch it using my telekinesis, and expand the ice on the arrow, freezing the whole target over. I roll forwards, stand up, and shoot another arrow, breaking it into tiny ice shards. I could stop there, but I don't. I do a backflip, but in the same time pull out two arrows from my quiver, freeze them, and shoot one after another at the targets next to the one that just shattered. As I land on my feet, I expand the ice, and telekinetic-punch with my hands, destroying both of the targets.

I wipe the sweat from my forehead. "Not bad, huh?" I ask.

_Awesome._ Ella tells me.

"Let's try some combat training together now." Six tells us. She teaches us some moves to master. However skilled I am at archery, I'm certainly quite a beginner at close-combat. Six beats me easily, though she tries hard not to show it.

The rest of day passes quickly. After the second period of training, Adam, Two and John go to check the Chimaera. Sarah and Six maintain constant surveillance on the house, using cameras that Sophia put around. Malcolm's driving with Sam, Ella and Sophia, trying to get more food, so somehow I end up with Five and Nine.

The boys are playing video games. I watch and silently smirk whenever Nine loses, which is basically every time. During a sci-fi shooting game, where Five gets his character to operate a huge mech, Nine gets either stomped or riddled with bullets, and even bombed by missiles.

"How are you this good?" Nine shouts over the volume of the X-box. "You're supposed to be in Africa for your whole life!"

"Guess I'm a natural." Five grins and pushes two of his joysticks forward, while holding onto the trigger. The character jumps out of the giant robot, soaring through the air on a jet-pack, while pressing a button. The mech explodes, and Nine's figure is caught in the radius. The screen flashes. [5]199-[9]34.

"I knew I shouldn't have taught you that trick." Nine groans. "But guess what?" He asks, brightening up. "Sandor taught me this." He punches random buttons on his controller. The screen flashes again, showing :[5]34-[9]199. "And now I win."

"Cheater!" Five accuses him. He throws a shadow sphere, but Nine dodges it easily. I laugh and join the fight, freezing Nine's feet by touching the ground. Nine breaks the ice with his telekinesis and jumps on the roof. "If you guys don't mind, I'll go sleep. I mean, it's like ten-thirty or something." He walks (upside-down) to his room.

Five shuts down the TV and I sit back on the sofa, relaxing.

He clears his throat. "You know, I'm still shivering from that shock you gave me earlier." I smile. "Yeah, well. You seemed too "hot" for your own good. I was just trying to let you chill."

"Sure. Don't you think you should..." Five stops.

"What?" I ask, confused.

"Give me a hug to make me warmer?" He asks, innocently.

I must've looked really shocked, because Five cracks up. "Just joking." I laugh too, but I'm mainly staring at Five. His handsome features, his tan skin, and how his soft blue eyes shine when he laughs…

Wait. What's happening? Eight is dead and now I'm trying to make a move on Five. How could I be so heartless? After all that grieving, I'm ready to wipe Eight clear off my mind.

"All right, I'm going to sleep, too." I tell him, avoiding his glance. "Guess I'll have to sleep on the sofa, by myself, then." He jokes. I smile half-heartedly, walk into my room and close the door.

[Five]

Darkness.

I don't know what's happening. I've never had a vision like this before, where everything is black and forbidding.

I look around, blinking as my eyes accustom to the darkness. Wandering around, I find a solitary figure sitting on, to my right. I walk over, and see that he's actually sitting on top of a cliff, while black water churns below.

The man turns his head, and even though I've never seen him before, I know who he is. Loridas. I've heard enough from him from Two, but I'm still in shock. I was expecting a old man, with greying hair, but next to me is a blond young man, in his twenties.

"I knew you'd make it here, child." He tells me.

Being called "child" by a guy who's five or six years older than me is quite disconcerting.

"What is this place?" I gesture around me. From what I've seen, I'm on a island, surrounded by the sea. But that's not it. The sky is grey, there's no sun, and the water is almost the same color as ink.

"It's the future of Earth. One of the possibilities, where Setrakus destroys everything. Look around you." He gestures. "The planet is shriveled. There's only sea, and where we are now. And very soon, the water from this ocean will be taken by him to Lorien."

"To Lorien? Not Mogadore?" I ask.

"Yes, Lorien." He furrows his brows. "There's a lot of things you should understand, but some should not come until much later."

"What should I know?" I ask.

"What should you know? That's an interesting question." He stands up and snaps his fingers.

I feel like I'm jumping off the cliff before me. A collection of distorted images enter my mind, so blinding that I cover my eyes. When I move my hand away, I see the Garde. A girl with blond hair, and tan skin. One. And next to her is Two. Another boy, who appears to be Three. Then John and Sophia, Six and Marina and also Eight, Nine, and Ella. They take no notice of us, but stand and stare blankly at the sky. I look up and see that I've entered a completely different world. Lorien.

Lorien, green and lush, with a blue sky, soaring with Chimaera. Lorien as it was.

"This is another future." Loridas tells me. "In which Setrakus is defeated. In which the Phoenix stones are used to restore Lorien and its inhabitants."

"But where's me?" I look around. "Shouldn't I still be here?"

"Ah, you." Loridas looks at me. "Sadly, you will not be part of this future. There is only one alternative in which you are alive to see Lorien again, and we have just left it."

Just left it... Which means I'll only exist...

"...if Setrakus wins. Yes." Loridas finishes, and I'm startled. I forgot that he could read minds.

"I'm not Five, am I?" I ask Loridas. "I'm Eleven."

"Technically, being Eleven would mean you've received my blessing." He replies. "And since you have not, you are not 'Eleven'. But as you have no proper name, Eleven would do."

"But... Who am I?" I ask, confused. "How could I be... Eleven?"

"I cannot explain everything, child. It's time for you to revisit the past." He snaps his fingers again.

This time, I'm not overwhelmed with blurring images, but the world around me changes again. I see Lorien, when the Mogadorians invaded.

And it's as horrible as I remembered. The screams, combined with the laughter of those who still have not realized the end is near. Thousands of Mogadorian ships, emerging from the sky. Pikens, Krauls, everywhere. The two moons, and the blood, from the Loric, but also from the Mogs. Gleaming red.

I look behind me, and see my younger self, stumbling, but running away from the battle, scared and unable to comprehend what happened. Hiding in to a small crevice, formed as a result of the explosions. Hiding, until the battle has ended, and then wandering the battlefields.

"Where are you going, child?" A voice sounds from behind. Setrakus Ra, younger but still gruesome, walks toward him. No, me. The Mogadorians are following him.

"What's happening?" "I" ask. "Where's everyone?"

"Everyone's gone." Ra replies. "We're the only ones left." He reaches out and takes me, feeling my forehead. "Yes, he is the one. Now, let's leave." He tells his officers. My younger self starts to cry softly, as Setrakus Ra takes his hand and guides him back to the Mog ship.

"There's nothing to cry about. Never show weakness." Ra tells him/me. "_Strength is sacred. _Remember that." My kid self stops crying and repeats shakily: "_Strength is sacred._"

"Good. Let us move on."

The vision changes, and I find myself looking at a Mog base. At least, that's what I think it is, because I've never seen a Garde train in a Mog base before. An older version of me, probably nine years old, trains hand-to-hand combat, battling Mogadorians. He's good at it, and ends up knocking out fifteen or sixteen without breaking a sweat.

"He is good at this." A general, probably Adam's father, speaks to Setrakus.

"Of course he is. I trained him myself." Ra replies. "He will become one of the best."

"Yes, lord. But are you sure he will join our cause? He is Loric, after all."

"He will. I am certain of it. He will bring the Garde down, and he will ensure our victory. The others will not suspect him."

"If you say so, lord. What will we do with him after he finishes his purpose?"

Setrakus Ra looks at the general. "I will not have him terminated. He may be a Garde, but he is a true Mogadorian at heart."

"As you wish." Andrakkus Sutekh retreats.

"Lord!" The Garde, no, _I _run toward Setrakus Ra. "What did you think of my performance?"

"One of my officers almost knocked you down. It would be a disgrace if he did. Other than that, you did well."

"Yes, lord." _I _smile, relieved. "When will I start getting my legacies?"

"Soon." Ra replies. "Come, Eleven. I will show you something." My younger self follow him into a narrow corridor, and enters an empty room.

Ra closes the door shape-shifts into me.

No, not me, but into a handsome man in his early twenties, with black hair, and icy-blue eyes. If I had an older-brother, this would be what he looked like.

Eleven groans. "I hate when you do that. It defies your great book."

"Don't let the Mog cause get into your mind too much, Eleven. We are Loric. The great book is but a sham. You know our true purpose; defeat the Garde."

"Yes, but it makes you seem so... vulnerable."

"Everyone is vulnerable, child. Especially Loric, like us. We are vulnerable, yet that is our strength. This is my true form. I am proud to have it. You should also be proud of your Loric blood, too."

My next words sends a chill through out my body. "Yes, father."

"Good." My-older-lookalike nods. "You were eager to gain Legacies, were you not?"

"Yes, father."

"Then let this be a reminder to our true power." He explodes his shadow, and the pieces rush towards his chest, and unleashes a shadow ray that splits the floor into half. Then Ra punches two of his fists together, looking straight at a machine to my right. The machine's shadow erupts and overwhelms itself, crunching it into dark matter as black as night, then disappearing. I'm shocked. I've never seen my power used like that. "No Mogadorian can compete with the Loric. You should know that, son." Ra says.

Eleven gulps. "I understand." Then his shocked expression turns into a smile. "Do I get powers like that?"

"Yes, my son. You will."

The image shifts into another time, when I'm about twelve. I'm lying in a machine covered with tubes, pumping liquid in and out of me. However, my mouth is uncovered and I'm still free to speak with Ra, who's returned to his usual, ugly self.

"Lord, does this mean I will lose any memory? Of myself? Of the cause?" I/he ask/asks.

"Yes. But do not worry, you will be a true Mogadorian at heart. You will redeem yourself soon."

"But what if I betray you, Lord? What if I help the others?"

"You will, to overcome suspicion. But I will make you remember who you are, as soon as we meet again."

I/Eleven nods. "Yes, Lord. I understand that it is crucial to not remember."

"You will always remember, Eleven. You are one of us." Then, as an after thought, he says: "_Strength is sacred._"

I nod. "_Strength is sacred._" I repeat.

Then darkness. I'm sitting on the cliff with Loridas again.

"Do you understand now, child?" He asks. "Setrakus was an Elder. He was your father, to be exact."

"But how?" I ask him. "He's with the Mogs! He's the leader of them."

Loridas sighs. "Once, Setrakus was a great man. He was our ruling elder, of Lorien. He was powerful; he was stronger than any of us, but he was also a just ruler. For eons he ruled, and we helped. We built a perfect planet, filled with peace. And then Pittacus started to get all the Legacies."

"And then?" I ask.

"Pittacus and Setrakus, who were always friends, had a huge quarrel. Pittacus thought that he was the one worthy of the throne, yet Setrakus disagreed. He called Pittacus a liar. We elders had a vote. Most of us decided that the most powerful elder should be our ruler, and therefore Pittacus got the throne. Setrakus, infuriated, tried to get Pittacus to duel with him. Pittacus refused to harm Setrakus, and got hurt as a consequence. We exiled Setrakus from Lorien, and he escaped to Mogadore. Filled with desire for vengeance, he corrupted the normally peaceful Mogadorians, and brainwashed them with the Mogadorian cause. Then he destroyed Lorien. The ten Garde that escaped him drove Setrakus to Earth, and since every one of them was one of our incarnates, he wanted to torture them."

"And me?" I ask.

"You were his only child." Loridas tells me. "You were born back in Lorien, before he escaped to Mogadore."

"But that means I'm hundreds of years old? How can that be?"

"Your birth was delayed. As a child, you were put in a cryogenic chamber, and was released by Setrakus when the time was right."

I nod. "But what does that mean? From what I've seen, I'm pretty much a traitor before I lost my memories."

Loridas contradicts me. "And look where you are now. No matter what lies Setrakus has fed you, you have a true Loric spirit. Your father was delusional, overpowered by his own thirst for power. But you are different."

"Yes, sure." I'm not exactly convinced. "But if he wants to restore Lorien... That can't be too bad, can it?"

"Setrakus wants to restore Lorien, so that he can build his own empire of slaves that obey his command. He will destroy Mogadore and Earth in the process. That is bad."

"Oh. And something else you said... about not seeing me in the alternative future where the others succeed. Is that true?"

"It is true." Loridas averts my glance. "If Lorien lives again, if the Garde succeed, and if Setrakus is destroyed..."

"I will have to die." I finish his words.

* * *

**So... HUGE PLOT TWIST, I know... sorry, guys, if there's something to be sorry about, but here's some bad news: I'll be releasing my fics one chapter a week (and I used to deliver four chapters per day!) I know a lot of you thought Sophia was Eleven, so that's why I wrote it the other way around! Again, thanks for the reviews, really appreciate them. IF YOU HAVEN'T READ MY OTHER FANFIC FREAKING GO READ AND FOLLOW IT. I promise it'll be better than this one.**

**I know some of you like Eleven a lot, so it'll be hard knowing that he has to die... I know, it's really hard for me too, cause Eleven is my fav character. Also, don't call Marina heartless, her response was perfectly natural. Assuming Eleven still lives, will you guys let me continue 7/11 thing? (Oh, god, seven eleven...) Gimme an answer, folks! All right, stay tuned for next chapter: the decision!**

Arctic Blue


	25. Chapter 25: The Decision

**Hi guys, it's Blue! I haven't updated in two weeks, and this is a short-ish update, but I hope it's good. I spent a lot of time writing it, and tell me what you think! Also, this is the last chapter of part one of this fic, and it will be put on hold while I write Eight's Legacy. Hope you enjoy it! Blue. Also, since it's the last chapter, don't you think you should write a longer review? **

**-Arctic Blue**

* * *

[Eleven]

It makes sense, I think bitterly.

I feel like my life was a jigsaw puzzle and I just fit the last piece in. I know why I thought I was Five, why the Mogs didn't kill me when I was with Two, why I couldn't remember my Cépan. I know who the real traitor is, who the real Eleven is, who the real incarnate of Setrakus Ra is. I know.

And it's horrible.

As I wake up from my vision, I walk into my room and lock the door. My brain is in turmoil. I lie on my bed, thinking over and over again: I'm a traitor, Setrakus's son, and the threat. Setrakus can hack into my brain whenever he wants and I won't be able to stop him. I won't be able to stop myself from killing the others. I suddenly feel the desire to suicide. I have to die, anyways. Why not now, when no harm is done? The thought is so strong I absorb every shadow in the room. One quick blast. That's all it takes to die.

I have made the decision. There is no turning back.

[Adam]

"This one's recovered quite well." John tells me, pointing at a Chimaera to my right, which has taken on the form of a white kitten. "It can control its shapeshifting now."

I nod. "And the others…"

"Look for yourselves." He replies. He points behind me. The other Chimaera I rescued are either sleeping or shape-shifting at an abnormal speed.

Two crouches before the recovered Chimaera and strokes its fur. "This one's cute."she says, smiling. The Chimaera purrs and snuggles into her outstretched arms.

"It likes you, Two." John says. I completely forgot he had animal telepathy. "You should keep it, since you don't have any Legacies yet."

"Really?" Two asks excitedly, before realizing that John can't hear her. "That's awesome! What should I name it?"

"It's your choice." I tell her. "You can name it what ever you want."

Two nods happily, cuddling her Chimaera. "Have you tried healing or talking to the others?" I ask John.

"I have. Some of them are in too much pain they can't even communicate with me. This one tells me that they've been in painful experiments. Scientists were extracting their skin tissues and attaching them to piken, krauls, and even Mogs. None of them have really succeeded, though once a Mog turned into a wild piken and they had to kill it. I should get Marina when she recovers, though. She's way better at healing than I am."

" 'When she recovers?' " I ask him. "Didn't you see her beating Five moments ago?"

"You have a point." John laughs. "I'll tell her about it tomorrow."

"I'm freaking starving." Two tells me. "Where's Malcolm?"

"He'll be home soon." I tell her. _Ella? _I think. _You there? Not to sound mean or anything, but we're famished._

_Yes! We've got the food, and we'll be back soon! _I hear Ella's voice. "They'll be back in a couple of minutes." I tell John and Two. "Let's go."

We leave the room, with John holding BK and Two hugging her new Chimaera. It's dark outside, and when we get to the living room, I find that Five's already asleep on the couch, and Nine and Marina are nowhere to be seen. Malcolm and the others have already arrived, and we start to eat.

Six and Sarah join us shortly after, bringing us good news. "It's so calm and quiet out there you could hear a pin drop. Nobody's even coming near where we live." Six remarks.

Sam nods. "That's good news. It means Sophia did a good job of covering our traces."

Six shakes her head. "It's not good news. It seems too suspicious, like someone's deliberately trying to let our guard down."

"Come on, it can't be too bad." Sophia says. "I'd say we all earned the right to rest. Let's just wait until tomorrow, and..."

"And what?" Six asks, snorting. "If you want to sleep, then go. I'm going to check on surveillance with whoever has the sense to come with me."

"I'll go." Sam says quickly. Six rolls her eyes but smiles. "Thank you! Anyone else?"

"I'll go with you guys." Ella replies. "I'm not too tired." Together they walk back to the surveillance room. Sarah, Two, John and Malcolm head back to their respective bedrooms, and I'm left with Sophia.

"What was that?" She demands. "I was just trying to make everyone relax, and then you people thought I was an idiot or something. I specifically built alarms and stuff to prevent..."

"I don't." She stares at me. Oops. "I mean, I don't think that you're an idiot." I say, feeling like one myself.

"Thanks, Mog-boy. So, my only supporters are a sexually-obsessed freak that goes by the name of Nine and a mentally-deranged Mogadorian boy that claims he's on our side. That's comforting." She says, but smiles at the same time. "No, I mean it. Thanks."

I nod. "Don't take Six's remark too personally. She sometimes speaks harshly, but she just doesn't want anyone to get hurt."

"I know… It's just… I feel like everyone doesn't like me, because I say that I'm the real Five, you know? I feel that I'm an outcast, just because they all suppose that I'm fake."

"Oh, that. I'm not sure who really is Five, but it doesn't really matter. Even though if you were Eleven, you would still…"

"No." Sophia interrupts. "Eleven is a different matter."

"Why? He, or she, is still a Garde."

She sighs. "Do me a favor, will you? Don't tell anyone what I'm going to tell you."

"Okay…" I tell her. I have no idea what she means. "What is it?"

"It's something I learned when I was locked in my cell." She starts.

[Eleven]

I have made the decision. There is no turning back.

I aim my hands at my chest, meaning to force a sphere into my body and literally burning myself up, but stop. No need to cause so much pain. I remember what Setrakus (my dad) showed Eleven (me) all those years ago. How he forced a shadow of an object to devour itself.

I punch my fists, causing the shadow fragments to flow out of my body, and encase myself in a huge, shadow. I slowly drop my hands, so that my shadow can destroy my own essence.

This is it. This is where I die. I take one last look at the world, outside my bedroom window, and…

"Five?" Marina gasps, opening my bedroom door. "What are you doing?"

I'm startled, and drop my shadow immediately. "Nothing, I'm just… Practicing using my legacy." I lie feebly. Looks like I'm not going to kill myself after all.

"Oh, sure, the others are waiting for you." Marina tells me, and starts to walk out of my room.

"Marina, wait!" I tell her.

She turns back, and I stare into her beautiful brown eyes, though still quite red from crying over the loss of Eight. I know exactly what I'm going to do. I have made the decision. There is no turning back. I'm still going back into the Underworld, but this time, I have a better purpose.

I'm going to bring back Eight.

[Seven]

"Marina, wait!" Five calls. I turn back, cautiously. "I've made a decision."

"What?" I ask, a little harshly than I expected. I don't want to talk with Five, even though he's been nice to me. I don't want to abandon what little I have of Eight.

"I'm going back, Marina." He says, simply. "I'm going to save Eight."

Conflicting emotions creep into my mind. Shock, disbelief, then a state of ecstasy at the thought of Eight coming back again. Last of all, though, comes my conscience. No, it's too dangerous to attempt it.

"Don't be silly." I say, lightly. "It's not possible."

"It is. I had a vision about it. A life for a life."

"You had a vision?" My conscience gives away to my hopes of seeing Eight again. "That's awesome! Let's tell the others..." Then the full meaning of his words strike me, hard. "A life for a life?"

"Yeah. Kind of sucks. If Eight is brought back, I have to die." Five grins, grimly.

"No." I say, without thinking properly. "You can't die for Eight. I can't let you..."

"I have to die, anyways!" Five shouts angrily. "Don't tell me what you can, or can not let me do! It's my decision!" I recoil in shock, and he takes a deep breath. "Sorry. That was mean. I meant, I can die for Eight. It's not..."

"You have to die, anyways?" I interrupt him.

"Yes. It's true." He tells me. "Come on. I'll tell you everything when we get to the others."

"The others are already here." A voice sounds from outside the door. John. Malcolm, Sam, Sarah, Six, Adam, Nine, Sophia, and Ella are behind him.

"Okay..." Five says. "Can I sit on a couch or something?"

Minutes later, we're sitting by the living room processing what he just said. About him being Eleven, the traitor. Beside me, Adam and Sophia tense but they don't say anything. Ella and Six, who are to my left and right, have their mouthes agape, unable to process what he just said.

"That's bullshit." Nine says, after a long silence. "You can't be a traitor."

"I can. You don't really know me, not before my memory was wiped." Five/Eleven tells him. "Trust me, before I was pretty much the biggest traitor that ever lived."

"It doesn't matter. You're one of us,now." John tells him.

"It does matter!"Eleven shouts, like he did with me. "Haven't you been listening? I'm Setrakus's son! He could control me anytime he wanted. He could be listening to our conversation right now! If I don't die, you all will."

Sophia nods, slowly. "He's right. It would be better."

"What?" Six exclaims. "How could you be so heartless?"

"I'm not. He has to die, anyways, if what he said is true. Why not now, at his own hands, than later, in which he'll surely suffer for his sins?" Sophia tells her. "It would be merciful, not cruel, do let him exchange his life for Eight's."

"I suggest a vote." Malcolm says, and everyone nods. "Everyone say what they think."

"I think Eleven should go." Sophia says flatly.

"I'm with Sophia." Nine and Adam say simultaneously.

"I'm against it." Six says. "And so is Ella."

"I'm not sure." Sam says. "I guess… I'm against it."

"I'm with Sam." John says. "Sarah?"

"Sophia's right, John." Sarah tells him. "I'm with her. There's no need to let Eleven suffer any more."

Malcolm removes his glasses and wipes it with his shirt, staring down at the floor. "Forgive me for saying so, child, but you are right. The best option would be for you to save Eight. I am with Sophia."

"Two's with Six." Adam says. "That leaves you, Marina."

I have the deciding vote. I have to decide whether Eleven goes to save Eight, or not. I have to choose between him and my true love.

It sounds simple, but it's not. It's like condemning someone to his own death. It's like killing Eleven. A life for a life. I want to break down in tears. I have no idea what I'm going to say.

A mental picture of Eight, with his deep brown eyes, still alive, blossoms into my mind. Laughing. Joking. Calling me Marina, Mar. Telling me he loves me. Laughing. Joking. Dying at my feet. Telling me that we will always be together.

And then Eleven, asking me to hug him. Shivering and begging for Six to turn on the heat. Talking with me, telling me that he could bring people back to life. Inside an ice-block, while I thaw and heal him. Eleven, telling me he's there to save Eight for me. Fighting his own childhood shadow.

Eight or Eleven?

If someone could have overseen my life, he would have pointed to this day, while I hesitated over Eight and Eleven, and said: "This is when Marina changed. This was when she turned from a carefree, kind, girl, into something else." Yes, this is the day I've turned into something else, for the better or for the worse. Because it is not out of kindness, not out of mercy, when I make my decision.

"I'm with Sophia." I whisper.

[Eleven]

"I'm with Sophia." Marina says.

What? I wouldn't have expected that from Marina. I glance at her in surprise, and she lowers her head and stares at the floor. I had been cursing myself for letting the decision fall to her. And she just let me sacrifice myself?

Well, at least nobody's going to stop me. Except for Two.

"What? No, Five!" Funny how she's still calling me that. "You can't go."

"Listen to me, Two. It's what I want. It's the only way I can keep you safe." I tell her firmly. I stand up and grab my chest, Marina's chest and John's chest from behind the couch. "Okay, so this is how it works. Marina and John, can you guys open your chests?" They touch their hands on the locks, wincing as they click open. "Marina, there's something like a compass in your chest, and John, there's a bottle of dark liquid in yours."

"Is this it?" John asks, holding up a small vial of liquid, as dark as shadow.

"Yes." I tell him. I open my chest, and take out a crystal sphere, the one that is used to hone legacies. I take the vial from John's hands and pour it over the sphere.

What comes out is neither liquid, nor gas, but something in between. A tangible shadow, pouring over the crystal like night. Immediately, the crystal darkens, and the temperature drops, freezing in my hands..

"Great." I say. I take Marina's compass, and place it on my right hand, and put the crystal on the floor. I grab the golf club and it transforms into Azrael. Stabbing downwards on the crystal, I use all my strength, and the crystal breaks into shadow fragments. A black door, made out of shadow, appears out of thin air.

This is it. I take a deep breath and step in.

[Unknown]

How long have I been here, alone? Eons? Millennia? Infinity?

Alone. It's somehow relaxing. As if you are the only person in the world, and you could do everything you wanted, without Mogs and Loric and whatnot. Without anyone interrupting your peace. Alone. It goes on and on, for an eternity. Alone. Just sitting, without any sense of time or anything else. Does it matter? Does anything matter here? They do, in the world above. But does anything worth anything down here, below, in the underworld?

Alone. It numbs you, after a while, I think, bitterly.

I just wish Marina was here with me.

[Eleven]

The door behind me shuts as I step again into the dark realm where spirits of the fallen Loric reside.

I hold out the compass on my left hand, with Azrael on my right. It glows in a white color, pointing not in north, west, east and south but in four directions, III, II, I and VIII. The numerals for One, Two, Three, and Eight. I feel bad about the others, since they'll have to stay here for an eternity. Too bad.

Wait… Isn't Two alive? No time to find that out, I tell myself. Keep walking.

I walk to the direction on my right, where Eight is. This is the last stroll in my life, I think. Better cherish it.

Distance in the underworld isn't exactly as it is in the world above. You can walk miles and feel that you've only gone for yards, or the complete opposite. Right now, I feel like I've been walking for miles. The arrow in the compass that points to Eight is nearing One and Two. Could it be that they're in the same place? That would make my job harder.

I decide to take a risk and shout. "Eight! Are you there?" My voice echoes, around the depths of hell.

"Yes!"

[Seven]

He's gone. And Eight will be back soon.

Six is completely ignoring me for what I did. Even Sophia won't talk to me, even though she was the one who suggested it. I guess my decision was completely irrational. It didn't match who I was, or who they thought I was.

I'm sitting in the couch alone, waiting for good news. Waiting to hear that Eight and Eleven, against all odds, have both made it back. Waiting to hear that…

A piercing alarm interrupts the tranquility of the room. The Mogs. They're here. Somehow, it doesn't surprise me. We've been alone for too long.

_Marina! _Ella shouts in my mind. _Help!_

I stand up and grab my bow and quiver from my chest, putting them over my shoulder. Eight has already been killed.

Nobody's dying again on my watch.

**END OF PART ONE, THE SPILT ASHES**


End file.
